connect circle 2026: Female Leadership, Relevant Event Apps and 30 Years of dimedis

This year’s second connect circle was also an anniversary edition: dimedis is turning 30. The opening evening at Pe303 on the Rhine brought that history and the partnerships behind it to life. A summer evening in Cologne, good conversations, a barbecue, ice cream and a great 30th-anniversary party. Congratulations again! 🎉

The next day at Clouth Quartier focused on the topics shaping retail, trade fairs and events: commerce media, AI, digital signage, visitor management, measurable trade fair results and how digital services can make a difference on site. Having attended the first connect circle last year, this time we took part in two sessions ourselves.

Panel: “Rethinking Leadership: Why Female Leadership Matters to Everyone”

Our managing director Jens von der Heydt joined Christine Sommer from NOMOO ice cream, Juliane Jähnke from agendum and Konstanze Dallmeyer from dimedis to discuss why modern leadership goes beyond individual career paths. Moderated by Franziska Grabow, the conversation covered structures, visibility, networks and unconscious patterns. It also explored how companies — and, as Jens stressed, men — can help turn good intentions into meaningful change.

Masterclass: “Relevance at the Right Moment: How Event Apps Become Personal Trade Fair Assistants”

Next, Florian Ehle from dimedis and our managing director Stefan Grund showed how apps, including event apps, can become more relevant in the age of AI and hyper-personalization. They shared an exclusive look at the ongoing development of the FairMate Event App, which we build together with dimedis. It already offers much more than a digital program: content is tailored to different audiences before, during and after an event, providing the guidance, information or interaction people need at the right moment.

Thank you to dimedis for two great days and an event that brings industry discussion, product insights and personal connections together so well!