IMS Canceled
Owner Informa has announced the suspension of its IMS Outdoors event series for 2022.
It had been hoped that the 2021 decision to reimagine the traditional winter indoor expo tour formula into an outdoor activity-based formula last year might have breathed new life into the program, however, that has proven not to be the case at this time.
A statement by Informa said that "after 40 years of producing the International Motorcycle Shows and IMS Outdoors, we have made the difficult decision to suspend the IMS Tour in 2022.
"The powersports industry is at a crossroads with where and how brands promote their products amidst the continued manufacturing and sourcing delays associated with the pandemic. These current hurdles that our brand partners are facing would have made it difficult for us to produce an IMS that would meet your, and our, expectations.
"Therefore, we will not be moving forward with the planned 2022 events, including the Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show."
J&P Cycles had already decided not to renew its long-standing sponsorship of the UBCBS, respected industry veteran Bob Kay having separately decided to step away from his duties as organizer of the custom shows.
The International Motorcycle Shows were originally owned and operated by Advanstar Communications. They were acquired in 2014 for $972m by British media conglomerate UBM/United Business Media. It in turn was swallowed up by London Stock Exchange listed Informa in 2018.