A new con conglomerate is on the scene with LeftField Media LLC, launched last year by Greg Topalian, founder of New York Comic Con and some colleagues. They’ve been jetting around teaming with some of the smaller shows on the circuit as opposed to launching new ones — which on the crowded con circuit would be suicide. Just announced: adding Washington DC’s Awesome Con, which was launched in 2013 by Ben Penrod to the LeftField roster. This year it drew over 40,000 attendees. Awesome Con’s 2016 will be held June 3-5, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
“We’re thrilled to work with Ben and the Awesome Con team,” said Greg Topalian, President of LeftField Media. “Awesome Con is an incredible event, and DC is a very special region with tremendous fans. We look forward to taking Awesome Con to the next level with new publisher relationships and exciting new entertainment properties, and growing it into something even more awesome.”
“We’ve built a deep relationship with our fans, and they are constantly asking us to bring important one-of-a-kind guests, events, and announcements to Awesome Con,” said Ben Penrod, Awesome Con Founder. “Greg and the LeftField team are as committed to the fan experience as we have been, and with their relationships and experience added to the mix, we will make Awesome Con a must-attend event for fans far beyond our nation’s capital.”
Other shows on LeftField’s roster include more niche events:
Stream Con NYC – An online content creator fan convention and industry conference in partnership with Tubefilter (streamconnyc.com), October 30-November 1, 2015 at Javits Center, NY
Play Fair – A toy and play-focused convention for families and collectors in partnership with the Toy Industry Association (playfairny.com), February 13-14, 2016 at Javits Center North, NY
AXPONA – A high-fi audio convention for audiophiles and the audio industry in partnership with JD Events (axpona.com), April 15-17, 2016 at Westin O’Hare, Chicago
Awesome Con is a full service show with comics, costumes and celebrities—last year guests included William Shatner, George Takei, Sean Astin, and Kevin Eastman. In addition to Topalian, LeftField’s executive roster includestrade show veterans Britton Jones, Mac Brighton, and Sharon Enright.
I hope they can fix many of Awesome Con’s growing pains. This year had significantly more vendors, but the same/less attendees than the year before. The setup was awkward and led to entire sections of the exhibitors floor with no foot traffic at all.
What?!? Someone is hosting a fan event in conjunction with ToyFair?!?! SQUEE
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