In all, around 110 events and companies have been nominated for the Australian Event Awards, with the winners to be announced at a ceremony in Coffs Harbour in regional New South Wales on October 21.
The shortlisted nominees include 65 events in the running for the 16 best event categories, of which at least 32 are conferences, exhibitions, brand or corporate events or incentives.
There are a further 13 companies that have been nominated in the industry achievement categories, which include design, marketing and technical achievements as well as achievements by Australian companies in the international events industry.
Another 33 companies have been nominated in the categories covering the best businesses in the industry, from production companies to venues, hotels, caterers and styling, exhibition and service companies.
Amongst the business events shortlisted are the 52nd Congress of the International Association of Hydrogeologists, Trucking Australia 2026, the Polestar 5 National Launch Event 2026, AWS Summit Sydney 2026, the Google Cloud Summit Sydney 2026, Oceanic Palliative Care Conference 2025 and the 76th International Astronautical Congress, the largest international conference held in Sydney since the pandemic which has already scooped three awards at the Australian Business Events Awards in December.
There are also a couple of CommBank events in the nominee mix as well as Kia’s utility vehicle launch, Tasman Town 2025, which took over a small town in regional NSW.
Companies with multiple shortlisted business events include Phoenix, ICMS Australasia, FCM Meetings and Events and Imagination.
“I think what made these projects special is that every creative decision started with one simple question: how do we make people feel?” said Phoenix founder, Amber Coupe.
“In an industry that’s often chasing the next big thing, we’ve always believed that human connection is the most powerful creative idea of all.
“These nominations are a reflection of extraordinary clients who trust us to think differently, an incredible team who cares deeply about every detail and the relationships we’ve built together over many years. It’s an incredibly proud moment for our team,” she said.
Public events nominated include Vivid Sydney, Perth Multicultural Festival, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Brisbane 2026, Santos Tour Down Under, North Queensland Elite Rodeo, Moomba Festival and the ASICS Gold Coast Marathon.
In the achievements categories, nominees include Artists in Motion, Chameleon Candle Co, David Atkins Enterprises, AV1, Veritas Events, Lüp Events and Novatech Creative Event Technology. The last four are also nominated in the company categories.
AV1’s managing director, Nigel Mintern, said the company is “over the moon and incredibly proud of our team” in the light of their multiple nominations, including for their work on Premier Financial Alliance’s Sydney incentive program in 2025, with Laissez-Faire Catering and Simply Seated, which has sparked a wider collaboration between the trio.
“This recognition is the sum of all of our parts,” said Mintern.
“To be shortlisted alone is an achievement worth celebrating, and it’s a testament to the team’s commitment to technical excellence and delivering every production with the care we’re known for.
“Our work delivering 26 event experiences with The Travel Corner for Premier Financial Alliance’s Incentive series in Sydney, Bali and Europe allowed us to collaborate with trusted partners, Laissez-Faire Catering and Simply Seated, locally and export Australian production expertise internationally to deliver some of the most ambitious productions we’ve ever done.
“Over 90 per cent of attendees described the Sydney incentive as the best incentive trip in the company’s history, and our client described the delivery as ‘sheer perfection’.
“That kind of feedback is truly special for all delivery partners.”
Other companies in the business events sector up for an Event Awards trophy in October include MCI, which organised the International Astronautical Congress, Nectar, Funktionality Events & Experiences, Laissez-Faire Catering, Iceberg Events, Imagination and ICMS Australasia. Many of these company finalists delivered events shortlisted in the best event categories.
“To be nominated…this year is a testament to the way in which ICMS Australasia continues to strive for excellence for all of our clients and across all of our events,” said ICMSA’s owner and CEO, Emma Bowyer.
“This year the events reflect our diverse portfolio and the power of conferences to bring societal change, whether that be in the important conversation about domestic violence or securing global water supplies impacted by climate change and development.
“Our clients and what they want to achieve at their events keeps pushing us to do our best.
“We are celebrating our 60th year of operation in 2026 and being recognised by our industry peers and continuing to raise the bar for our industry is extremely rewarding,” she said.
The full list of nominees for the Australian Event Awards can be found here.
