7/6/2015 8:35:00 PM
HEADLINES
Fastener Tech Booth Count Up for 2015
Exhibitor numbers rose for Fastener Tech 2015. The 2015 show directory lists 164 exhibiting companies totaling 180 booths. That is up from 147 companies with 152 booths in 2013.
The show announced a “nearly 1,400” figure for total registration, compared with 1,526 at the 2013 biennial trade show. However, the 2013 figure included attendees from the adjacent and concurrent Surface Finishing trade show.
This Fastener Tech was held June 8-10, 2015, at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL.
Numbers from previous Fastener Tech shows were based on total registration rather than actual attendance: 2011 – 1,049; 2009 – “More than 1,900”; and 2007 – 1,611.
Exhibitor Comments
“We enjoyed Fastener Tech,” one Chicago-based exhibitor commented on the 2015 Fastener Tech. “Our people got to meet our clients and we also obtained some leads and a potential new salesman.”
One Midwestern-based exhibitor keeping track of the number of people stopping at his booth said the count was higher than he had in Las Vegas.
“Excellent for a regional event,” another participant said in a FIN survey of exhibitors.
“We made some excellent contacts at the show,” one exhibitor reflected. “I believe that two years ago we may have had a bit more traffic than this year but the quality of contacts is important and we made some particularly valuable contacts this year.”
“I thought the Fastener Show went very well on Tuesday. There was constant foot traffic throughout the day. It was nice to see surrounding states participating with the MWFA. I saw customers and prospects from Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa and Minnesota.”
“I always enjoy this show. Nancy Rich is so easy to work with and their communication and organization is second to none. This show is always so exhibitor friendly. Little things like providing exhibitors lunch is a very nice touch and means a lot to me.”
“It’s nice to see show managers give back,” an exhibitor commented. “Some do nothing for the exhibitors. I have to say the bang for your buck on this is show is outstanding. The quality of the attendees, not so much the quantity, is extremely important.”
One national exhibitor finds Fastener Tech to be a domestic show, in contrast to Las Vegas where as high as 40.1% of the exhibitors in recent years have had foreign addresses, “There were no foreign exhibitors right next to me selling to my customers.”
“I continue to like the idea that the show is held every two years versus annually and I applaud that regional associations along with the NFDA supported the show and established agendas surrounding it.”
“The venue is great, and very convenient for everyone,” an exhibitor from the East Coast said. “We have a lot of customers there and good reps in the area. I was actually very disappointed in the distributor turn out. It is very much like a regional show in a national show setting. For us, it is mainly PR and we will most likely be there no matter what.”
“We are happy to support an association event,” one MWFA member said. “But in the long run, each show has to show results.”
“Every other year is enough in Chicago. We need a show elsewhere in between. We see Midwestern distributors here and western distributors in Las Vegas. Let’s go elsewhere to see new customers.”
“Year after year the national and regional associations lose millions of dollars by not sponsoring their own major show,” one observer complained. “Associate members in particular pay higher dues because the associations stick to regional tabletops instead of a major national show.”
The Second Day Issue
Many exhibitors had hoped the National Fastener Distributors Association meeting starting at the end of the show would draw second day traffic.
“The first day was good but I would gladly pay an extra $100 to convert the show to one day versus two days,” an exhibitor from multiple shows said. “Day two was dead and I did not see many NFDA members on the floor.”
“The first day was worthwhile,” one exhibitor reflected. After a pause, he suggested “exhibitors here and in Las Vegas should abandon their booths after the first day to send a message to show management.”
“Two days was too long though,” said one exhibitor who found the first day worthwhile.
Show management needs to “devise a draw for second day traffic or cut the 2017 show to one day,” an exhibitor said of quiet aisles on Friday.
“As with most shows the second day was quiet but, not disappointing. I had plenty of time to talk to a new lead and received a nice order the very next day. Based on the attendees and excellent treatment exhibitors received, I would like to see this show to become the industry’s national show.”
“If I were to change anything, it would be, cut it to just one full day. Wednesday was dreadful. I might have seen only a few distributors, and the rest of the people were exhibitors.”
“The traffic was pretty good the first day until mid-afternoon,” said a marketing vice president who has exhibited at dozens of trade shows. “The second day is extremely poor, but this is always the case. I did like the fact that the companies that I did see were the actual buyers and had some very good conversations.”
“First day ‘B+’, second day ‘D’,’’ another exhibitor graded the show.
Fastener Tech is sponsored by the Mid-West Fastener Association and Fastener Technology International magazine.
The next biennial Fastener Tech is being planned for June 2017. MWFA holds a tabletop in even-numbered years and it will be the association’s 35th annual trade show. It is set for June 14, 2016, with the 64th annual golf outing on June 15.
For information contact MWFA executive director Nancy Rich. Tel: 847 438-8338 Email: mwfa@Ameritech.net Web: mwfa.net
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