CES Organizer Teams With Retailer Group
By Heidi Genoist -- Tradeshow Week, 3/7/2005
As if mega-show Intl. CES weren't large enough, the producer of the annual Las Vegas gathering for the consumer electronics industry has made a move to further bolster participation.
The Consumer Electronics Assn. and the North American Retail Dealers Assn. in late February revealed a partnership aimed at strengthening the relationship between retail dealers, service providers and manufacturers.
Neither side would disclose the exact terms of the deal, saying only that it was a commitment to work together on a variety of projects, such as consumer education programs, networking and mutual public policy interests.
Retailers already account for a large portion of the buyers at CES, which broke its own records this January by drawing more than 140,000 attendees to visit 2,550 exhibitors occupying 1.5 million net square feet of the Las Vegas Convention Center. (The show's audited data will be available within months.)
The approximately 3,000 stores operated by NARDA members annually sell an estimated $10 billion worth of home and mobile electronics, as well as computers and household appliances ranging from washing machines to air conditioners. The organization, which began in 1943 to promote appliance manufacturing during World War II, champions the needs of independent retailers of all sizes throughout the United States.
The partnership will allow CEA to promote CES to these retailers, said spokesman Jeff Joseph. "We'll work closely together to leverage our mutual strengths to reach the respective membership and promote each others' events. Participation in NARDA's events will help CEA recruit members and promote our events, services, research and promotional opportunities," Joseph said.
NARDA President and CEO Tom Drake said the partnership with CEA is part of the retail association's larger strategy to grow and offer members better benefits by reaching out to other organizations with overlapping needs and constituencies.
"To be partnering with CEA sets a standard for some of the other things we're trying to put together," Drake said. "It's a very good opportunity to bring our members greater value, and it allows CEA to connect with a segment of the marketplace that's key to them."
NARDA does not produce any tradeshows, but has a long list of educational events, the largest being its semiannual Institute of Retail and Service Center Management, next scheduled for April 1–4 in Santa Cruz, Calif.
"We got out of shows about 10 years ago," Drake said, adding that NARDA is currently in discussions with five service-oriented associations in similar industries about producing a partner event next year. A conference would drive the event, which would also contain a small exposition of products and services by key companies.
Drake explained, "Most of our retail members are involved in service. Say, you bought a television from a NARDA member, they would probably also come to your house and fix it. So, the service part of our business is just as important as the sales part."
CEA already partners with several other consumer electronics-related organizations. Among those participating in Intl. CES are the Society of Automotive Engineers, with some 84,000 members involved in the engineering of mobility systems; and the Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Assn., whose dozens of members include heavyweights like DIRECTV, Sirius Satellite Radio and MTV Networks.
In early February, CEA announced it would collocate the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' Wescon with CES in 2006. The two groups will co-produce a conference and new technology showcase as part of the show's Innovations Plus section at the Sands Expo & Convention Center Jan. 5–8 in Las Vegas.
