Following negotiations previously reported by British Dealer News, UK-based events group UBM has agreed to buy US trade show specialist Advanstar Communications for £608m, from hedge fund Anchorage Capital and private equity investors Ares Management and Veronis Suhler Stevenson.
Advanstar owns one of the two big annual American motorcycle trade exhibitions, Dealer Expo, as well as regional consumer-facing Progressive International Motorcycle Shows. It also runs more than 50 other trade shows across a number of industries, about 100 conferences and has a portfolio of related print and digital publications, including the US bike and powersports trade magazine Dealernews.
Already the world’s second-largest events promoter after Reed Elsevier, ABM’s Advanstar acquisition will make it the dominant US operator in this field. The purchase will be funded by a £563m rights issue and a £62m bridging loan facility, according to UBM chief executive Tim Cobbold.
“Advanstar gives UBM a portfolio of high-quality, must-attend events which serve growing markets, particularly in the US fashion industry,” added Cobbold.