2026 HAMILTON EVENT INFO
DRINK EXHIBITOR PORTAL
9 CITIES + 25k PEOPLE = ONE HECK OF A PARTY
SCAMMERS
Important Notice: Beware of Scam Emails
Dear Exhibitors,
We have been made aware that scammers are attempting to deceive our exhibitors by offering a fake attendee list in exchange for payment. These fraudulent emails originate from Gmail accounts and are not legitimate.
Please note that any official correspondence from our team will come from an @iheartbeer.ca email address and will only be sent by Faron, Haben, or Matt. If you receive an email from any other sender, it is not from us.
If you encounter such an email, do not respond. Instead, please mark it as spam and disregard it.
Thank you for your vigilance in helping us maintain a secure and trustworthy event.
NEW
1 - The event is now ONE day with TWO sessions
2 - Parking is no longer covered in the booth fee, the cost is $7.00 at the recommended lot but you can choose to park anywhere.
3 - Our theme for the year is "Drink Local"
4 - Thanks to our partners, all Hamilton drink exhibitors situated along the main line in the centre of the venue will have access to one power plug for LED lights. So please bring extension cords and a strand of LED lights.
5 - Payment for extra supplies and/or rentals can be done directly within the portal in 2026.
EVENT INFO
BASIC INFO
- Official Festival Name: 2026 Hamilton I❤️BEER Festival
- Theme(s): Drink Local
- Festival Code: HAM26
- Days: 1
- Festival Date(s): Saturday, February 21st, 2026
- Festival Sessions: 2
- Location: Hamilton Convention Centre By Carmen's (Main Floor)
- Location Address: 1 Summers Ln, Hamilton, ON L8P 4Y2
HOURS
- Event Hours: 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM
- Unloading Hours: 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM
- Setup Hours: 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM
- Teardown Hours: 10:05 PM to 11:55 PM
TOKEN & ATTENDANCE INFO
- Token Value: $2.50 ($2.18 + $0.32 Tax)
- 2025 Venue Capacity: 1,500
- 2025 Projected Attendance: 2,800
- Festival Max Theoretical Attendance: 3,000
DRINK EXHIBITOR FEES
- 10x10 Exhibitor Space: $0 + 40% Revenue Split
EXHIBITOR FEE INCLUSIONS
- Table(s): 1
- Chair(s): 1
- Staff Passes: 2+
- Ice: 4 Bags (20+ Pounds Per Bag)
IMPORTANT
1 - If you've never attended an I Heart beer event in the past, we recommend you read all the information provided.
2 - Carts can be limited. If you have a portable cart, we recommend you bring one to speed up your unloading and loading times. It's always better to have one and not need it then to need it and not have it.
3 - Ice comes with your booth fee and can be picked up at the token booth with vouchers that can be found in your welcome package.
4 - Municipal water supply and drain via a small commercial prep kitchen is available near the loading dock.
5 - Any type of flame or heat at a booth requires a fire extinguisher for the entirety of the event.
6 - Power is ordered through the venue if you need power for more than just lights.
POWER
Power must be ordered through the venue using the link below. Every year we receive a discount code so please wait till we've secured the code. Once we've gotten a code, we'll post it here along with the deadline date for the discount.
✅ Venue Power Form (Must submit for Power): LINK (2026)
✅ Ontario Tradeshow Electrical Standards: LINK (2026)
DOWNLOADS
✅ Exhibitor Guide: Coming Soon (2026)
✅ SOP (Special Occasion Permit): Coming Soon (2026)
✅ Hamilton Marketing Creative: Coming Soon (2026)
✅ Blank festival floor plan: LINK (2026)
✅ Completed festival Exhibitor floor plan: Coming Soon (2026)
✅ Festival insurance requirements: LINK (2026)
✅ Venue loading dock directions: LINK (2026)
✅ Parking directions from the loading dock: LINK (2026)
PROJECTIONS
*Latest Update: March 20th, 2026
* Our last update will be on Wednesday prior to the event.
- Cost Per Token: $2.50
- Max Number of Drink Exhibitors: 18
- Projected dollar spend per Attendee: $21.00
- Projected Samples per Attendee: 8.4
- Projected Attendance: 2,800 Total
- Projected attendee-to-drink exhibitor ratio: 155:1
- Projected Average Samples per Drink exhibitor: 1,302
- Projected Average Ounces per Drink exhibitor: 6,510 Ounces
RESULTS
✅ Hamilton : February 7th + February 8th, 2025 - LINK (2025)
✅ Hamilton: LINK (2024)
HISTORY
2026 - Returned to 1 day event, may return to 2 days once the economic climate improves.
2025 - Lowered the % Split to 60/40, two years earlier than planned thanks to achieving our 30k ticket sales goal in 2024 and an increase in partnerships. Also expanded the capacity of each session by 100 tickets each for a total of 300 extra tickets for a grand total event capacity of 4,200.
2024 - Event expands to 2 days + 3 sessions. The Saturday sessions sellout but we are short 255 tickets for a Friday sellout.
2023 - The 1-day + 2-session event sells out.
2022 - No event due to covid 19
2021 - No event due to covid 19
2020 - The taco theme becomes a permanent edition of our winter tour. The 1 day + 2 session event sells out.
2019 - Event changed to 1 day + 2 sessions with a taco theme. Event sells out.
2018 - Event changed to one day + 1 session with a bacon theme. Event sells out.
2017 - The first annual Hamilton I Heart Beer festival. The event was a 2 day, 3 session event. The event was focused on beer and food pairings. Turnout was not as high as expected. We planned for 2,500 to 3,000 and only managed to get 1,980 tickets sold.
2016 - I Heart Beer was founded
5 Year Strategic Plan
In today’s evolving economic landscape, we are navigating new territory with a strategic focus on sustainability and efficiency. Beginning in the 2026 season, all our events will transition to a one-day format, allowing us to streamline marketing efforts, enhance operational efficiency, and deliver greater value to our exhibitors.
Our primary long term growth trajectory will be driven by our Ottawa and Toronto festivals. Both cities offer world-class venues capable of accommodating 10,000+ attendees per day and their expansive markets provide us with an opportunity to achieve our ambitious long-term attendance goals of 50,000+ attendees per year.