Our history
Reed Exhibitions – a history
The origins of Reed Exhibitions can be traced back to 1966 when IPC purchased a stake in US Cahners Publishing and its exhibition portfolio. IPC was acquired by Reed International in 1970 and over the next 15 years, Reed and Cahners continued to grow their exhibition business in the US, Asia and Europe through acquisition and merger, becoming Reed Exhibition Companies in 1986.
With the purchase of Miller Freeman Europe in 2000, Reed Exhibitions became the world’s largest exhibition organiser. In the decade since, there has been a strategic shift in emphasis towards the growth markets of China, Latin America, Russia and the Middle East, fuelled by joint venture partnerships and the leveraging of market-leading Reed brands.
Reed’s first major presence in China (Reed Huayin) was established in 2003, followed by Reed Sinopharm in 2005 and Reed Huabo in 2007. In 2007 Reed also acquired Alcantara Machado in Brazil, making it the Number 1 organiser in Latin America.
RX is seeking to increase the proportion of the portfolio in Asia and emerging markets from 24% to 35%.