Whether you decide to attend or exhibit at a trade show in the City of Roses, Portland, OR offers opportunities for businesses to connect with potential customers, build brand awareness, and achieve their marketing and sales goals. The city’s vibrant atmosphere, diverse business community, and cost-effectiveness make it an ideal location for hosting a successful trade show.
If you are unfamiliar with Portland, here are a few interesting facts that make it the perfect destination for any trade show participant:
- Largest independently owned bookstore in the world: Powell’s City of Books spans an entire city block.
- More bridges than any other city in the world except Venice and Amsterdam
- Craft beer capital of the world: More breweries per capita than any other city
- Food carts: A Portland staple, offering a variety of cuisines from around the world.
- Close proximity to stunning natural scenery: Mount Hood, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon Coast, and Willamette Valley wine region.
- Thriving music scene: Home to numerous musicians and bands, including Everclear, The Decemberists, and Pink Martini.
Portland Oregon Trade Shows: A Hub for Diverse Industries
Portland, Oregon boasts a thriving business community, making it an attractive location for trade shows. Here are some specific advantages of participating in a trade show in Portland:
Targeted Audience:
- Portland is home to a diverse range of industries, including technology, healthcare, manufacturing, and food and beverage. This attracts a large number of potential customers and qualified buyers to trade shows, allowing businesses to target specific audiences.
- The city’s growing population and vibrant economy mean that there is a strong demand for new products and services.
Access to Talent and Resources:
- Portland is a hub for talented individuals and innovative companies. This makes it easier for businesses to connect with potential employees, partners, and collaborators.
- The city’s strong support for startups and entrepreneurs provides access to valuable resources and funding opportunities.
Cost-Effectiveness:
- Compared to other major cities, the cost of exhibiting at a trade show in Portland is relatively affordable. This makes it a good option for businesses of all sizes, including startups and small businesses.
- The city’s compact size and efficient transportation system make it easy to get around and navigate during the trade show.
Unique Atmosphere:
- Portland’s creative and entrepreneurial spirit creates a unique and vibrant atmosphere at trade shows. This can help businesses stand out and make a lasting impression on potential customers.
- The city’s focus on sustainability and environmental consciousness resonates with many businesses and consumers, making it an ideal location for showcasing eco-friendly products and services.
Additional Advantages:
- Portland offers a variety of venues suitable for hosting trade shows, from large convention centers to intimate art galleries.
- The city’s renowned food scene and diverse cultural offerings provide attendees with plenty of options for entertainment and relaxation before, during, and after the trade show.
- Portland’s location in the Pacific Northwest makes it easily accessible from other major cities on the West Coast.
Must-Attend Portland Oregon Convention Center Events
The Oregon Convention Center is located on the east side of the Willamette River in the Lloyd District neighborhood (across from DT Portland). It is best known for the twin spire towers, which provide light into the building’s interior and for housing the world’s largest Foucault pendulum. It’s conveniently located next to major hotels, shopping districts, entertainment (Moda Center, for example), and mass transit.
FAN EXPO PORTLAND 2025 (January)
Join tens of thousands at the FAN EXPO who are just like you and experience the ultimate playground for comics, sci-fi, horror, anime, and gaming.
Three days of citywide events, family-friendly attractions, and world-renowned celebrities await. Attendees can shop for hundreds of vendors and exhibitors, check out panels and workshops, meet their favorite stars and creators, and celebrate what makes them geeky with thousands of other fans in cosplay.
Oregon International Auto Show 2025 (January)
Started in 1910, the Portland International Auto Show (PIAS) is an annual, four-day event that draws approximately 100,000 visitors. Events include Electric Avenue, Family Day, the Kids Zone, Rides and Drives, and Armed Forces Vehicles.
The Materials Show 2025 (February)
The Materials Show connects materials and components suppliers from around the world directly to apparel and footwear manufacturers.)
Mass Timber Conference 2025 (March)
The International Mass Timber Conference is the largest gathering of mass timber experts in the world, focusing on the entire industry supply chain.
Explore cross-laminated timber (CLT), nail-laminated timber, glulam, mass plywood panels, dowel-laminated timber, and laminated veneer lumber; and the opportunities and obstacles in global design, construction, development, manufacturing, and more.
Food Northwest Process & Packaging Expo 2025 (March)
Food Northwest Process & Packaging Expo is the largest regional food processing show. The show focuses on best practices and continuous improvement will encompass technical, energy, sustainability, environmental, and policy issues. Attendees include every sector of the food industry including fresh, dry, packaged, canned, frozen, beverage, dairy, bakery, fish, seafood, meat, produce and specialty, as well as suppliers that support the industry.
Hematology/Oncology Pharmacy Association (HOPA) 2025 Annual Conference (April)
HOPA organizes a variety of in-person and virtual education programs each year for hematology/oncology pharmacy practitioners. The purpose is to educate attendees about emerging research and new treatment regimens, along with supportive care therapies.
SIIM 2025 Annual Meeting (Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine (May)
Imaging Informatics Professionals of all levels gather at the SIIM Annual Meeting to engage, learn, and network while discovering the latest advancements in medical imaging. This year, the Annual Meeting would like to source more than 50% of the program through submissions from imaging informatics professionals.
Children’s Institute 2025 American Booksellers Association (June)
Children’s Institute is a three-day celebration of children’s bookselling, offering unique education for children’s booksellers in addition to general education sessions, roundtable discussions, networking events, receptions and parties, and dedicated time to network with booksellers, authors, and publishers from around the country.
The American Booksellers Association, a national not-for-profit trade organization, works with booksellers and industry partners to ensure the success and profitability of independently owned book retailers, and to assist in expanding the community of the book.
American Physical Society (APS) Division of Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics (DAMOP) 2025 (June)
With a typical attendance of 1,000 to 1,200 people, this meeting provides a more intimate forum to discuss AMO physics specifically—itself already a broad field. Besides a large selection of invited talks (the topics of which are proposed by the broader AMO community), the meeting also includes graduate student symposia, career development events, and an annual workshop on precision measurement and fundamental concepts,
NEA 2025 Annual Meeting and Representative Assembly (July)
The National Education Association’s (NEA) Annual 2025 Meeting takes place during the first week of July. Various committees, constituencies, caucuses, leadership groups, and delegates from state and local affiliates gather to set policy and chart the direction of NEA business.
American Association of Law Libraries: AALL Annual Meeting & Conference 2025 (July)
The American Association of Law Libraries is the only national association dedicated to law librarians and other legal information professionals. We believe that people need timely access to relevant legal information to make sound legal arguments and wise legal decisions. AALL 2025 is the conference for the legal information community to access the latest in professional development, connect with peers, and exchange ideas and best practices.
NHRMA 2024 Annual Conference & Tradeshow (September)
The conference for strategic human resource professionals and business leaders brings the best speakers and training opportunities in the Pacific NW.
Rose City Comic Con 2025 (September)
Portland’s premier pop culture convention event. Rose City Comic Con is a fun, family-friendly 3-Day celebration of comics, gaming, sci-fi, cosplay, anime, fantasy, and every fandom in between.
National Hydropower Association Clean Currents (October)
The Clean Currents Conference + Tradeshow is the industry’s all-encompassing event where the waterpower industry comes together each fall.
ASME – 2024 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE) (November)
ASME’s International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE) is the only event where research leaders from academia, government, and industry converge to make connections and share insights for innovation across engineering disciplines.
Not-to-Miss Portland Expo Center Events
The Portland Expo Center hosts over 100 events a year, including green consumer shows, trade shows, conventions, meetings, and other special events. The Expo Center is Oregon’s largest multi-purpose facility. The 53-acre campus boasts five exhibit halls totaling over 333,000 square feet and ten meeting rooms.
Portland Boat Show 2025 (January)
The Portland Boat Show features a wide range of boats, including fishing boats, family boats, runabouts, cruisers, and more. It also includes accessories, electronics, engines, propellers, and repair services. With over 200,000 sq. ft. of boats and watersports equipment, it’s the largest boat show in Oregon and Southeast Washington.
Pacific Northwest Sportsmen’s Show 2025 (February)
The largest Sportsmen’s Show west of the Mississippi, the 50th annual Pacific Northwest Sportsmen’s Show, returns to Portland with more than 800 exhibits, hundreds of new products, more than 120 seminars and dozens of new features and things to do, making it the preeminent fishing and hunting show in the country.
Portland Golf Show 2025 (February)
In addition to huge savings and a first look at the newest clubs, enjoy free lessons, instructional seminars, golf fitness, kids areas, a 19th-hole lounge, and fun tests of skill, including long drive, putting, chipping, and closest-to-the-pin contests. Your Portland Golf Show ticket also grants you admission into the Portland Seafood and Wine Festival while shows are both open.
Portland Spring Home and Garden Show (February)
The 2025 Portland Spring Home & Garden Show is February 20 – 23, 2025. Featuring Master Floral Artist/Designer Julia Rose from Australia, along with the Entry Showcase, Workshop Sessions, Floral Couture Activations, and Immersive Experiences.
Portland Seafood and Wine Festival (March)
Enjoy fresh Oregon seafood as well as wine, craft beers, cider, and distilled spirits as you browse the myriad of exhibitors at the Seafood and Wine Festival! Over 30 of Oregon’s finest wineries (and 20 other beverage makers) offer tastings of their very best.
Spring RV Show (March)
The Portland Metro RV Dealers Association is committed to exposing people to the recreational vehicle lifestyle. Americans find a freedom they cannot duplicate in any other way with the RV life; freedom to set their own pace and see what they want, when they want. Learn more at the Spring RV Show!
Northwest Food Show (April)
The largest B2B food show in the Northwest. This is an industry trade industry event and NOT open to the general public. All attendees must be involved with the restaurant, food service or hospitality industry.
NAGVA Championships 2025 (May)
The North American Gay Volleyball Association is a not-for-profit 501(c)(7) organization, committed to promoting and developing the sport of volleyball in the GLBT community. Our membership is diverse and non-exclusionary. NAGVA is an organization of over 5,000 active members in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.
Timber Processing and Energy Expo (September)
This is a one-of-a-kind must-attend event for professionals in the lumber, panel, and engineered wood products and wood-based energy and biomass industries.
The Timber Processing & Energy Expo is supported by Timber Processing magazine, Panel World magazine, Wood Bioenergy magazine, and Hatton-Brown Expositions.
Portland Bridal and Wedding Expo 2024 (October)
Whether you envision a formal black-tie affair or a casual barefoot ceremony on the beach, the experts at the Portland Bridal and Wedding Expo are ready to offer advice in creating timeless memories for your perfect wedding
Portland Holiday Market 2024 (November)
The 4th Annual Portland Holiday Market returns to the Portland Expo Center on November 15-17. There will be 100+ new vendors this year, as well as a Yuletide Wine Lounge, a 25′ living holiday tree, live music, and so much more
Considering a rental exhibit? Exhibits Northwest has the largest rental inventory on the West Coast and a team of designers who can assist with customizing your exhibit design. We’ll even assist with the installation at either the Oregon Convention Center or the Portland Expo Center.
Other Notable Venues for Trade Shows in Oregon
In addition to the trade show facilities in Portland, there are numerous meeting, event, and convention centers throughout the state. Here are just a few in the central, eastern, and coastal regions of Oregon.
Salem Convention Center: The Salem Convention Center is located in Salem, Oregon. It offers 150,000 square feet of space for meetings, conventions, and trade shows. The convention center is also home to the Salem Convention Center Exhibit Hall, which is 30,000 square feet of flexible space.
Riverhouse on the Deschutes: The Riverhouse on the Deschutes is located in Bend, Oregon. It offers 41,000 square feet of space for meetings, conventions, and trade shows. The Riverhouse is also home to the Deschutes River Conference Center, which offers additional meeting space.
Seaside Civic & Convention Center: The Seaside Civic & Convention Center is located in Seaside, Oregon. It offers 23,000 square feet of space for meetings, conventions, and trade shows. The center is also home to the Seaside Civic & Convention Center Exhibit Hall, which is 12,000 square feet of flexible space.
Sunriver Resort: This resort offers 60,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 35,000-square-foot convention center. It is located in Sunriver, Oregon, and offers a variety of recreational activities and amenities.