SAN DIEGO — For much of its 122-year history, the NAMM Show has served as a vital economic barometer for the creators, manufacturers, distributors and retailers of music instruments and equipment. It has also helped them to navigate unexpected shifts in an industry that saw near-record U.S. earnings of $8.7 billion in 2022.
Over the past several years, however, it has been the NAMM Show itself that has navigated unexpected shifts. Long held at the 1.8 million-square-foot Anaheim Convention Center and in adjacent hotel ballrooms, the music industry's largest annual trade show has changed course several times during the global pandemic.
"We had our biggest NAMM Show ever in 2020, with more than 115,000 NAMM members attending from more than 120 countries and territories. Then COVID hit and our ongoing four-year journey to get back to normal began," said Joe Lamond. He is the outgoing president and CEO of Carlsbad-based NAMM — short for National Association of Music Merchants.
