Convention company announces purchase of Las Vegas business

By Steve Green

Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010 | 1:38 p.m.

Freeman, a big player in the convention and tradeshow industry in Las Vegas and other cities, announced today it's growing by buying Las Vegas-based Encore Productions.

Encore, with just over 200 employees, is a creative production and audio visual equipment rental company with satellite rental offices in 14 Las Vegas properties.

“Encore is privately owned. They are regarded as leaders in their field, and also have a reputation for outstanding customer service. Encore employees understand the value of partnering with customers, and we believe they will be a great fit for Freeman,” Joe Popolo, CEO of Dallas-based Freeman, said in a statement. “Encore has demonstrated they are the technology and creative leader in their space. With the addition of their relationships to Freeman’s resources, we are positioning the combined Freeman organization for growth in an important segment of the face-to-face industry.”

Terms were not disclosed.

Freeman said it will retain Encore’s name and brand identity. Encore’s management team will remain in place to manage company operations and hotel customer relationships.

“Becoming a Freeman company is an opportunity for Encore to provide additional value to its customers,” Phil Cooper, CEO of Encore, said in a statement. “Freeman is viewed by its customers as the premier supplier in the face-to-face industry. As part of Freeman, Encore will leverage its own premium reputation and service offerings to expand Freeman’s reach into the hospitality marketplace in Las Vegas as well as in other markets. We are very excited to be part of a team with the industry experience and depth that Freeman has.”

Research by In Business Las Vegas, a sister newspaper to the Las Vegas Sun, this spring found Freeman had 318 employees at its new West Sunset Road headquarters and another 93 employees in a separate audio visual office.

The issue of jobs potentially being affected by the merger, given that Freeman already has an audio visual operation in Las Vegas, hasn't yet been addressed, said a spokeswoman for Freeman.

Freeman serves more than 400 tradeshows, meetings and conventions per year in Las Vegas.