New Shows: Choosing the Right Market

By Gary Tufel -- Tradeshow Week, 10/4/2004

For some people, there's a simple equation when it comes to choosing the right consumer show model: Strong economic conditions in a geographic market plus strength in a particular industry segment equals success. But some consumer show producers say the best indicator of the need for a new show is something even simpler: what potential exhibitors tell you about what they want.

For Shane O'Sheeran, director of expositions for Bentley Intl. Group, that's extremely important. If exhibitors express a desire for a new show, that's the best and clearest sign that such a show can be launched successfully.

Not so fast, said Jim Fricke, executive director of Colorado Garden Show and president-elect of the Natl. Assn. of Consumer Shows. "We have gotten feedback from our exhibitors on types of shows that are needed or different cities that need certain types of events. From that, we begin to investigate the city and the consumer show market in that city."

But often that exhibitor feedback is not reliable. "Once we begin doing the research, we realize there are other players or similar shows in the market that prevent us from trying to establish successful events."

In one instance, Fricke's exhibitors at a Denver show tried to convince him to try the same thing in Colorado Springs, about an hour south of the larger city.

"Our exhibitors kept asking us to do a show down there," he said. "But we found that there were already three spring home-related shows (that those exhibitors didn't even know about) and that the market really couldn't support those three, let alone a new event. We could have easily booked enough space from our Denver base (of exhibitors), but we realized that the attendance would be so hit-and-miss that with that many shows, the future might not be so good. We backed away because of that."

On the other hand, another company with lots of consumer show experience, dmg world media, is launching its third annual show in the same industry — in the same venue.

Dmg's upcoming launch of the Capital Remodeling Expo is based on exhibitor feedback in Washington, D.C. The area hosts nine existing shows in the segment, including dmg's Capital Home & Garden Show and Capital Fall Home Show, attracting more than 55,000 and 33,000 homeowners respectively, and a Washington Home & Garden Show of equal size.

When looking for new show ideas, said O'Sheeran, the launch formula is fairly simple: identify trends. "Pay attention to what's happening out there. Read as many newspapers and magazines as you can that carry information about current consumer trends," he said.

Once you've identified a likely industry segment for a launch, find a viable market for it. Trends can be regional or national — find out where there's the most interest. Then strike while the iron is hot, O'Sheeran said. For Bentley's Low Carb Products Expo (which he launched in Las Vegas July 17–18), interest was so high that the event became a reality in four months, from inception to show. It spanned 20,000 net square feet and attracted 92 exhibiting companies and between 1,400 and 1,700 attendees. Since then, the craze for low carb products has died down a bit, but Bentley took advantage of the trend.

Certainly, research is always involved, but to different degrees. But for O'Sheeran, and for dmg's U.K.-based business development director, Ben Brougham, the best indicator is exhibitor feedback.

And there's something else, Brougham said: a gut feeling. If a consumer show producer's instincts say no, "No amount of research will convince him or her to launch that show."

Brougham said there are mileposts to making a decision about launching a show, with teams of employees at various levels examining different factors. But perhaps most importantly, dmg talks with exhibitors — either using its own staff or a third party - on a regular basis, and meets with other organizers and with facilities to learn which areas may be ripe for new shows.

Other ideas are more top down. Dmg's research division looks at demographics of potential new markets to see if they match those where existing shows are held. Facilities are monitored for open dates, and new facilities examined; not long after West Palm Beach, Fla., opened its new facility, the South Florida Expo Center, dmg launched its Home & Garden Show there.

Dmg's two Food Network Great Big Food Shows, held in Cleveland and Philadelphia in November, were originally the brainchild of a British organizer who produced a public food show featuring celebrity chefs in Birmingham, England, for 15 years, later launching similar shows in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. He brought the idea to dmg to try in the United States.

Launches can take anywhere from six months to two years, but the average time — from planning, budgeting, a business plan, etc. to the actual show — is usually a year to 18 months. Brougham said, "It's about building different partnerships, talking with exhibitors, doing research, obtaining dates, taking a look at the competition, building local media partnerships — which is key — and getting the sales process in place."

Formats vary from country to country. For example, because the United Kingdom has a more condensed population, half its residents can get to London in two to three hours, so a show's catchment is potentially bigger than in the United States. U.S. organizers are usually smaller and more locally based. Few, if any, have massive launch ambitions, so dmg is fairly unique.