What better setting to kick off a meeting with the theme “Authenticity” than one of the most unique ballparks in the world?

For the ninth annual ThinkAbout conference, sponsors Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore — co-founders of Aurora, Ohio — based Strategic Horizons and authors of The Experience Economy — took their 120 attendees to Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles. The three-day event (September 12 — 14) focused on experiential marketing and the growing importance of authenticity, which Pine says is becoming the primary buying criterion for consumers. “People no longer accept the fake from the phony; they want the real from the genuine.”

The opening reception was held at a restaurant at Camden Yards, followed by an Orioles-Red Sox game. The meeting officially kicked off the next day with an opening session in the rightfield warehouse, and closed the day after in the same spot.