Carnival & Fair News

A fair manger’s first fair as manager can often be described as a trial by fire. For Mark Holland, the new CEO of the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE), his freshman fair was not just an ordeal of learning the ropes, but his prep time could hardly have been shorter. He was named to that position days before opening day.

Holland said the position wasn’t confirmed until July and the official announcement wasn’t made until shortly before the first fairgoers came through the admission gates of the largest fair in the nation of Canada and #6 on the 2024 list of top 50 North American Fairs, as compiled by Carnival Warehouse.  “It was actually the best way to come in,” said Holland. “The CNE was planned well before I started officially. I didn’t have time to look under the hood, the fair was in motion. It was an ideal way to start. I’m passionate about the CNE. The CNE is in the DNA of everyone in Southern Ontario. I just listened to the people who work here and the guests coming and watched.”

Holland admitted, “It’s a unusual situation to start two days before opening day, but I took that as the opportunity to see what going on, observe our team at work. They have a tremendous amount of confidence in what they do. It was really a huge advantage coming in like I did.”

Political Past

Holland’s previous fair experience may have been limited to fairgoer, but he’s spent his career in public service. Mostly recently as Minister of Health, but before then as a member of the Liberal Party, Holland represented Ajax, a Toronto suburb, in the House of Commons. He was first elected to parliament in 2004 and served until 2025 with the exception of four years after losing his seat in the 2011 election, but returned to parliament in 2015.

In March, Holland announced he would not to seek re-election in the 2025 federal election. In May, the CNE fired its CEO, Darrell Brown. He and his wife Lyudmila Bezpala-Brown (who ran an art gallery on the fairgrounds) were let go after being accused of workplace harassment and other misconduct, according to local news sources. The Browns have both denied the claims.

Brown, who first became associated with the fair as outside council in 2016, and was named Executive Director, Corporate Support and Legal Services in 2020, weeks before the pandemic closed down the event for two consecutive summers. He was named CEO and his first fair in that role was in 2022, taking over a beleaguered event whose coffers were bare due to the two cancelled CNEs. “Now is the time to stabilize our business environment, and Darrell Brown’s appointment as CEO and the related operational changes, represent an important first step in this process,” said Suzan Hall, then president of the CNE.

Brown was able to lead the CNE through a robust comeback, but the future of the event remained uncertain. The CNE leases its annual space from Exhibition Place, a 197-acre, publically-owned site with multiple meeting and event facilities. When the CNE had to renegotiate its contract with the City of Toronto, one of the fastest growing cities in North America, for the first time in recent memory, the city was considering proposals submitted by real estate developers for condos and mixed-use complexes on parcels of Exhibition Place property, eliminating its usage as a fairgrounds. 

Naming a high profile Canadian politician to what is tantamount to a national fair has also quelled trepidation about the event’s future. Holland said that the lease issues with the city of Toronto are resolved and his two top priorities are 1) increasing the utilization of the fairgrounds in the 347 days of the year when there is no-CNE to generate revenue and 2) building momentum and expanded programming for the 150th anniversary of the CNE that take places in four years.

 

Pivotal Time

“The CNE is at a pivotal time,” said Holland. “We have 197 acres on Toronto waterfront property. The lands here are underutilized. We have the fair which is a 146-year-old institution and wonderful relationships with vendors and all are fair partners, but we need more lines of revenue other than the 18 days of being able to bring to together businesses and the community for one of the world’s best fairs. The CNE’s 150th anniversary is going to be huge. The future of the CNE will be our ability to work with the province. We are going to extremely busy incubating small events throughout the year.”

According to Holland, Toronto has developed a master plan for the property that includes a future for the CNE as well construction of “condos and coffee shops.” Other changes he plans to implement regard other areas of the fair, such as the BMO Field, CNE Stadium and “our iconic food building which is now being used as storage. We want to make it a center for activity.”

After several years of shifting plans for the CNE and increasing tension with its governmental caretakers, the event finally has a clear direction for the future. But what the present, or at least the most recent past? How did the 2025 CNE go?

“It was a fantastic, we had a good opening and some record breaking days,” said Holland. “We did have some weather challenges, with rain six of the days.”

 Attendance for this year’s CNE was nearly 30 percent higher than the opening weekend of the 2024 fair, but then Mother Nature gave the fair multiple days of scattered rain and below seasonal temperatures. Attendance again surged on the long Labor Day long weekend -- with a forecast of ideal Ontario Summer weather consisting of sunshine and comfortable temperatures that encouraged hundreds of thousands to experience this Canadian tradition. Total attendance reached 146 million, which an official press release explained: “after a fantastic opening weekend, during the run of the Fair slowed the attendance trajectory and contributed to slightly lower numbers from year’s 1.49 million visitors but still came in slightly above the pre-pandemic average of 1.4 million visitors.”

 

Summer With Us

The fair leaned into its summertime fun by extending its branding with a now familiar tagline “Summer with US” -- now in its third year of leading the annual marketing initiative. “[It was] aimed at building community connectivity and honoring the importance of being a part of our visitor traditions,” said Jane Matthews, Marketing Director, CNE.

According to Matthews, “We kept our marketing & advertising budget consistent with previous years. An exciting difference this year was that we launched a new campaign that was specifically targeted to promoting our Bell CNE Bandshell concert series. For this campaign, we went out much earlier than our traditional advertising cycle to engage those ticket purchasers who would be planning their concert spend for the summer.”

Social media spearheaded the marketing, augmented with an expanded collaboration with influencers. “This year we increased our investment in specific program driven Influencer content,” she added.

The lineup at the Bell CNE Bandshell featured well attended shows by 98 Degrees, The Commodores, Bishop Briggs, as well as Canadian music acts such as Shawn Desman, Chantal Kreviazuk, and July Talk. Other popular attractions this year were Dinner in the Sky, where guest had – the ultimate dining experience suspended 150 feet above the Midway; MYTHOS, an immersive cultural experience featuring storytelling of the Chinese zodiac tale of The Great Race; the revered goddess of Nigeria’s sacred river; and Haudenosaunee creation story as the inaugural Drag Brunch EXtravaganza featuring the reunion of queens from Canada’s Drag Race Season 1.

NAME Midway

“2025 was another incredible year at the CNE. Families, friends, and young people alike gathered to experience the magic of the fair,” said Lynda Franc, Corporate Marketing Director, North American Midway Entertainment (NAME). The CNE holds a special place in people’s hearts, it’s the kind of event they plan and save for, knowing it delivers not only fun and excitement but also a sense of nostalgia that keeps traditions alive year after year.”

Top grossing rides this year were the Sky Ride, the Super Wheel, and the Polar Express. One of the largest midways on NAME’s route, the CNE featured about 60 rides, It’s also one of the company’s oldest midways.

“NAME has been a part of the CNE since our creation 21 years ago, and even before that, during 1/5 of its history as Conklin Shows,” said Franc. “For a time, our midway offices were located right on the CNE grounds, making it truly feel like home. Beyond the personal nostalgia, the fairgrounds are incredibly accessible by public transit, making it easy for guests from across the GTA to join the fun. And of course, having a CFL field at the center of the grounds creates one-of-a-kind views of the Sky Ride during game days.”

Franc also praised the relationship built over the decades with Team CNE. "The midway operations were as smooth as ever. The CNE team supports one another incredibly well, and we work with a lot of the operational team year after year without much change, so that helps with the relationship building and consistency."