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Explore Saint Louis warns of weaker meetings market in 2026, outlines strategy to boost leisure travel and optimize America’s Center
Summary
Brad Dean, CEO of Explore Saint Louis, told the Transportation and Commerce Committee that new economic modeling shows a possible dip in meetings and convention business in 2026; he outlined steps including targeted digital marketing, leveraging major one-off events, a strengthened film office and facility upgrades at the America’s Center and Dome.
Brad Dean, the new CEO of Explore Saint Louis, told the St. Louis Transportation and Commerce Committee that regional modeling from Oxford Economics and Tourism Economics projects a modest decline in meetings and convention business in 2026 and described a multi-pronged plan to limit the impact.
Dean said the visitor economy remains a major part of the regional economy: the model shows roughly $4.5–$4.6 billion in economic impact for the St. Louis metro region in 2024, about $1.1 billion in taxes generated through the visitor economy and roughly $9.4 million in hotel tax receipts in the most recent fiscal year. He also said about 42,000 St. Louis residents rely on the visitor economy for their livelihoods.
"We're not accepting this, and we're certainly not going to sit back and watch this happen without taking every action we can take to correct this," Dean said, summarizing the agency’s stance after showing pacing data for group bookings that he described as "worrisome" for calendar years 2026 and 2027.
To blunt the projected…
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