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| November 30, 2009 | |
People Making News
Trade Show Expo is a Web site for the trade show, convention and exhibit industries. This is an invitation to be a part of this Web site by placing a banner or link on our site. Contact us for advertising information. We are interested in knowing what is happening in your region and within your company. Feel free to send information regarding people, products, venues, shows, meetings and events.
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 Articles this week: Also read exhibit expert Barry Siskind’s column
Association News 2009 Five Star Weekend brings $150,000 to ASAE & The Center
“During this four day weekend, association professionals and industry partners had the opportunity to create and build long lasting business relationships that are critical to this year's success, especially during this economic climate,” said David DuBois, CMP, CAE, chairman of the Five Star Weekend and president & CEO of the Fort Worth CVB. “We thank our partners and event sponsors for their continuous support of the Five Star Weekend. With their support, we can continue advocating for the association community and providing the knowledge and learning of ASAE & The Center.” The 2009 event featured three community outreach projects: construction at a local Habitat for Humanity site, interactions with youth from a Boys and Girls Club, and an arts studio with children from The Milagro Center, a nonprofit organization that provides an arts education after school program to the disadvantaged children in the area.
Destination News
Switch produces tailgate party celebrating new Southwest Airlines service out of Milwaukee DALLAS — Nearly 1,000 people attended Southwest Airlines’ free Touchdown Milwaukee party on Nov. 1 to commemorate the airline’s new service out of Milwaukee and to support its recent ad campaign “Bags Fly Free” encouraging air travel during the recession. Experiential marketing agency Switch was hired to produce the event held in McKinley Park on Minnesota’s lakefront. The Minnesota Vikings would be playing the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in Wisconsin. This game would mark the first time Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre would return to Wisconsin as a visiting player. Favre played for the Green Bay Packers for 16 seasons. “Southwest Airlines had a vision. They knew they wanted a substantial tailgate party for this big game to inaugurate the 12 new daily flights from Milwaukee and to show Milwaukee fans the value and benefits that their flight service provides. They approached Switch for ideas on how to make this a fun, interactive event,” said Switch Senior Account Executive Jeannie Smith. “What we produced was a huge tailgate party for the Milwaukee community that really got them involved and having fun with the Southwest Airlines brand.”
Industry demonstrates resilience in face of uncertainty LAS VEGAS — Despite uncertainty in the overall economy, the 2009 SEMA Show demonstrated the resilience and determination of the specialty-equipment industry.
More than 1,700 businesses committed to their futures by exhibiting at the 2009 SEMA Show. And those businesses were not just along for the ride, but were actively innovating. Collectively, they showcased more than 1,400 new products. And as a result of increased floor space and a new location for the New Products Showcase, buyers made a record-high 65,000 scans, requesting additional product information. The media reach of the SEMA Show was also larger than ever, bringing the industry’s products and style to an ever-growing audience. This year, for example, enough showgoers posted items about products and vehicles to their Twitter accounts to push the SEMA Show into Twitter.com’s Top 10 trends. IAAPA Attraction Expo Las Vegas delivers success at IAAPA Attractions Expo 2009 Optimism fills aisles at Expo’s first event in Las Vegas LAS VEGAS — Preliminary estimates indicate 24,000 people, including approximately 14,700 buyers, from 108 nations participated in IAAPA Attractions Expo 2009 in Las Vegas Nov. 16-20 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
It is owned and produced by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) and serves as the marketplace for amusement parks and attractions industry leaders, decision makers, and visionaries who gather to network, view the latest innovations, and plan for the future. This is the first time the 91-year-old Expo has been in Las Vegas. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Bureau estimated the five-day event had a $40 million economic impact on the city. “We had some concerns about the economic conditions of the past year, but Vegas delivered the buyers as we anticipated it would,” said Charles Bray, president and CEO of IAAPA. “It may have taken us 91 years to get here, but based on these results, we look forward to our return in 2011.”
Association News Exhibitors gain by shows’ relocation CHICAGO — The Plastics Industry Trade Association (SPI) announced on Nov. 15 that NPE — The Intl. Plastics Showcase will move from Chicago's McCormick Place, where it has been since 1971 to Orlando, Fla. at the Orange County Convention Center in 2012. The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society chose Las Vegas, Nev. for its 2012 show. This caused the city of Chicago and McCormick Place to lose two large exhibitions in the last few days. Both cited high costs for exhibitors in Chicago as the primary justification for their relocation. The Trade Show Exhibitors Association understands the business choice made by HIMSS and SPI to choose other venues. In this world of electronic communication and instant gratification, trade shows are still wildly popular, a medium like no other, providing a unique opportunity for face-to-face interaction with customers. When marketers have to cut participation — not for strategic reasons but simply because the rising costs make them impractical or impossible — the whole industry loses. Chicago is a great city for exhibitors because of its ability to generate attendance and host meetings. McCormick Place is a world-class exhibition facility and the choice of HIMSS and SPI leaving for other locations should not be a reflection on either McCormick Place or the city but on labor rates that give both a bad reputation. We hope the loss of these shows will motivate leaders in Chicago’s exhibition industry to adjust the cost of doing business so that they can compete on a level playing field with cities like Orlando and Las Vegas for shows. TSEA members enjoy the experience of exhibiting in all three cities because of the variety of attendees and experiences each bring. They want Chicago to remain part of their event rotation International Show News Melville quality a success at Labelexpo Europe
Tarsus Group Limited appointed Melville Exhibition & Event Services Limited, a GES Worldwide Network company, as partners to supply the full span of exhibition services, including standfitting, furniture and floorcoverings, graphics, electrical and mechanical services, custom design and build as well as data and registration services. Using its own high-quality U.K. personnel and equipment, Melville built in excess of 2,800 square metres of shell scheme, supplied and fitted over 32,000 square metres of floorcoverings and installed over 800 electrical mains and piped services. In addition, Melville delivered over 200 furniture orders and designed and built a number of bespoke stands and feature areas. The registration team seamlessly managed over 24,000 visitors, from 125 countries, who attended the hugely successful event.
NEOCON EAST 2009 brings influx of exhibitors, attendees to Baltimore Convention Center CHICAGO/BALTIMORE, MD — The seventh annual NeoCon East brought in 7,331 attendees and 271 exhibitors to the Baltimore Convention Center, Oct. 28-29, 2009, once again making it a hugely successful show. Of the 271 exhibitors NeoCon East, hosted 163 were on the GSA schedule, the largest concentration of products and services for commercial interiors on the GSA schedule, making NeoCon East the most cost-effective method for attendees to source products for interior design projects. The show also featured Government Interiors, which focused on products and services geared to federal government procurement specifiers, and a GSA Integrated Workplace Acquisition Center booth on the show floor to assist attendees.
Pushy sales people have By Barry Siskind One of the things that drive trade show visitors crazy is pushy sales people. When visiting a show, the last thing visitors want to encounter are sales people who do not take the time to learn about their visitor’s unique situation before embarking on an over whelming spiel that includes information that has very little to do with their needs. It’s called the pitch. Think back to a time when you were a customer. You could have been shopping for anything: a new car, a winter jacket or something for dinner. Now pretend that you asked whoever was serving you for some information and that person took your question as a signal that you wanted to hear everything. What would your reaction have been? |
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“We are honored to have received this award,” said Duke Energy Convention Center General Manager Ric Booth, “we feel that being good environmental stewards by reducing the amount of waste produced by events in the building is simply the right thing to do.” 
LAS VEGAS — Pamela Howatt, president and owner of 
One of four pavilions showcased in the exhibit hall, Building Integration addresses one of the industry’s foremost topics of interest, spotlighting companies with enterprise system technologies used to maximize and form energy-efficient buildings.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership raised nearly $150,000 at the 2009 Five Star Weekend, an annual networking and professional development event for association executives and industry partners. Held at the Boca Raton Resort and Club in Florida, Oct. 29 – Nov. 1, the event featured acclaimed speakers and community outreach events.
The buyer figure represents an increase of 17 percent compared to the number of buyers who participated in IAAPA Attractions Expo 2008 in Orlando, Florida.
IAAPA Attractions Expo is the world’s largest conference and trade show for the $24 billion attractions industry.
BIRMINGHAM — Labelexpo Europe 2009, the world’s largest event for the label, product decoration, web printing and converting industry, took place on the 23 – 26 September at Brussels Expo in Belgium. Hosting more than 500 exhibitors from 40 countries, U.K.-based organisers Tarsus needed a service provider that could not only deliver ‘volume’ but also offer high levels of service.
“The number of attendees and exhibitors at this year’s NeoCon East shows its strength as the premier show for the Federal Design Community,” said Mark Falanga, senior vice president, MMPI. “Exhibitors’ focus on government business is what makes the show one that is in demand, so much so that we are already experiencing a strong exhibitor re-sign rate for the 2010 show in Baltimore.” 
