Skift Take
It’s nearly impossible to get a final tally of the shutdown’s impact but it’s safe to say the meeting industry was harmed. Now, experts advise planners to take caution.
The trickle-down effect of the recent 35-day government shutdown on the meeting industry was vast—so much so that it’s still being determined. But a few weeks after the stalemate ended, several points of impact are clear.
Many meetings had to be canceled, or were impacted by attrition, particularly government training and education programs that lost funding, or events where government employees were slated to attend but the dollars to pay for their travel, lodging, and registration no longer were available.
That had a domino effect on venues, their vendors and employees, others that benefit from meetings, and an industry association, which is now working to ready planners in the event of another government closure.
“As those members affected by the partial fede
