The Event Industry Power 50, produced by EMRG Media, drew more than 6,000 votes for its 2026 class — more than double the program's inaugural total — with over 1,000 ballots cast within the first 24 hours alone. The 50 honorees span event planning, production, design, entertainment, venues, and experiential marketing, with the full honoree wall now live at eventpower50.com/2026.
How Honorees Are Selected
Selection splits equally between public voting and an editorial panel review. That hybrid model is intentional: a vote-only format advantages whoever commands the largest email list, while a closed-door panel can overlook operators outside established networks. The combined approach is designed to surface working professionals running boutique shops alongside widely recognized names — a distinction that matters in hospitality and event production, where some of the most skilled operators run lean, client-focused businesses with little marketing infrastructure.
Each honoree receives a profile on the official wall — complete with photo, name, title, and company — active for a full year, plus a badge formatted for LinkedIn and email signatures. The program's focus on individuals rather than firms addresses a persistent gap in trade recognition: most awards go to companies, leaving the planners, producers, and designers who execute the actual work unnamed.
The Expo Stage and Speaker Lineup
The 2026 class will be called to the stage at 92NY during The Event Planner Expo Speaker Series on Tuesday, October 27, in New York City. The three-day expo brings together more than 2,000 event professionals, 150-plus exhibitors across two floors, and 60 speakers. Beyond the Power 50 celebration, the education program features Ed Mylett, Ed Libby — the designer behind the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens in Las Vegas — and Dr. Delatorro McNeal II, a Hall of Fame speaker and bestselling author.
For hospitality operators and venue professionals, the expo represents a concentrated opportunity to engage with the buyers and producers who book corporate events, galas, and large-scale experiential programs. Understanding who holds influence in the event planning community has direct implications for venue sales, catering contracts, and hospitality partnership strategy. EMRG Media, founded in 2001, has produced more than 1,100 events for clients including Google, Goldman Sachs, Netflix, and LVMH, giving the Power 50 program credibility rooted in direct industry experience.
"The people on this list run companies and move real budgets," said Jessica Stewart, VP of Marketing for The Event Planner Expo. "They are the ones booking the venues, producing the galas, and setting the standard in this business."
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
