Exhibitor's Exhibitors Like What They See

According to Exhibitor Magazine Group, its March 9-13 Exhibitor at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino broke its own records. By the time the show opened, 3 percent more people had pre-registered than at the same time in 2007. But what mattered most to the 315 exhibitors filling 77,500 net square feet of exhibit space was not the number of attendees so much as the quality. Tradeshow Week traveled the showfloor to find out what they were seeing.

“The attendees are coming by and staying longer and talking to us more, rather than coming by and looking and coming back and looking again and then finally talking to us. I think they're taking more time to research ahead of time. They know what they're looking for: more economic solutions with more creativity, stretching their budgets further. I mean, the green initiative is a big thing for them, but what I think it really comes down to, for the ones we talked to, is money.”

Dalene Threeton, elephant trainer, Exhibit Fair Intl.

“The dollar is weak, so a lot of companies are looking to export their services overseas. To be global, like me, is a plus. They're saying, 'This is my first time to be international. Can you help me?'”

Gino Pellegrini, president, Inter-Global Exhibitions

“Attendance is about the same for us. The level of intelligence from the end users, the exhibitors, is remarkably high. … Now, with the marketing of green in the industry, we're attracting more of that, so the individuals we're talking to know what they want. They know about the materials. The thing I hear the most about is, there's so many people touting aluminum as green, and it's not.”

Tim Morris, president and CEO, Eco Systems

“The attendance feels a little better to us this year. … If a recession comes and it does hit hard, it will hit us about 12, 14 months down the road.”

Ron McEntee, account executive, Art Guild/Avalon Exhibits

“I think (our clients and prospects are) going to maybe less shows. I think they're thinking a little bit more about some shows. We are finding that there's a lot of interest in the virtual environment, virtual tradeshows. It's a more cost-effective way sometimes for those in emerging markets to start the process (of exhibiting). We are finding too that the cost of rentals may be coming through a little bit more. People may not be prepared to make the same investment. … Attendance here is very good. We've noticed a little less, but the quality might be higher than years past.”

Doreen O'Reilly, account executive, MG Design