SHOW NEWS: How Exhibitors Can Save Money at NIFS/West

John Wolz

The basic booth at the National Industrial Fastener Show/West costs $1,595 but furnishings, shipping and staffing almost always add up to much more. By meeting ordering deadlines exhibitors can reduce show costs.
Registration is running ahead of 2004, show manager Susan Hurley announced.
The ninth annual West show will be 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday morning, November 17-18, 2005, at the Paris and Bally”s hotels in Las Vegas. Conferences and an opening reception are on Wednesday.
Though the main Paris ballroom and the auxiliary Champagne ballroom are sold out, it will not be the largest show NIFS has produced. There will be 522 exhibiting companies totaling 600 booths. The NIFS record was 653 booths at the 1998 show in Columbus, OH. Last year there were 501 companies taking 578 booths.
Money Saving Deadlines
Advance registration is now $40. Registering onsite is $50. Last year some reported standing more than an hour in long registration lines which slowed even registered attendees in getting through the lobby to the show. Registration can be done at fastenershows.com or by fax and mail. The early bird discount ended October 3.
October 25: Deadlines begin for exhibitors to order services such as electrical service.
October 31: Deadline for advance discounts for conferences sponsored by the Western Association of Fastener Distributors on Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) and by the Los Angeles Fastener Association on Dimensional & Material Specifications (see FIN, July 27, 2005).
Reserve Booth Furniture by November 1: The basic furniture package of a 6″ table, plastic contour chairs and wastebasket are $166.05 before the deadline and $249.30 after November 1.
Skirting for an 8-foot table is $107 before the deadline and $160.50 ordered after November 1.
Carpeting ranges from $112.50 to $339 by November 1 and $168.75 to $508.50 ordered late. Padding adds $115 to the early price and $175 to the late price. Because the ballrooms are carpeted exhibitors don”t need to rent another layer for padding. Exhibitors using skirted tables at the front of the booth may find customers don”t even notice if there is rented carpet. However, with 600 booths competing to attention renting an eye-catching carpet might be an “investment.”
Even small items can save money. Instead of paying $12.50 to $18.75 renting a plastic wastebasket pack show materials in an extra $3 office wastebasket or use aisle containers for free.
14 day advance discount for airline tickets: November 1.
Hotel Savings: Hotel rates vary by the night even on official NIFS rates. The fastener rate on Tuesday night at Bally”s is just $89, Wednesday and Thursday are $109 and Friday jumps to $149.
With a $10 online coupon at Ballys.com prices are the same on Wednesday but less on Thursday and Friday.
The fastener rate at the connecting Paris Hotel is $119 on Tuesday, $129 on Wednesday/Thursday and $189 on Friday.
With 131,503 hotel rooms, Las Vegas offers plenty of competition for lodging dollars. There are thousands of hotel rooms within walking distance. A sampling of rates on hotels.com at hotels less than half a mile away on Wednesday and Thursday nights: Flamingo $125, Caesar”s $260, Mirage $119, Tuscany $79 and Travelodge $57.
In addition to many nearby hotels, the new Las Vegas Monorail has made others more convenient, including the Stratosphere Tower at $39 and the kids-oriented CircusCircus at $39 on hotels.com.
There is a Monorail stop at Ballys. Other hotels using the Monorail include the Las Vegas Hilton, MGM Grand, Luxor, Tropicana, Aladdin, Mandalay Bay, Harrah”s, Imperial Palace and Sahara.
Many Las Vegas hotels increase prices for Friday night.
Exhibit staff: Before making final booth staffing plans check with show management on distributor registration compared to last year. When distributor attendance drops the exhibit staff can be more than double the number of potential customers and exhibitors end up paying for staff to stand around.
In 2004 distributor registration jumped 31.8% and many expect exhibitors will react by increasing booth staff for 2005.
Booth Design: Years ago the “pop-up” displays were designed to reduce shipping and set-up costs. Today there are retractable banner stands, which roll into the space of a folded umbrella for “take out” convenience instead of shipping. Elmers.com offers corrugated folding display boards.
Order Materials in Advance: Brochures, business cards and other convention materials ordered ahead may save you overnight shipping charges.
Shipping: The handling charges for crated materials are less than materials requiring special handling. The first small carton is more expensive than subsequent cartons.
Read Your Exhibitor Kit: There are rules about booths in the Exhibitor Kit. Arriving with a booth that violates line-of-sight or height rules could leave you paying for an emergency makeover. Uncertain about the rules? Contact Susan Hurley at NIFS. Tel: 614 895-1279 Fax 614 895-3466 E-mail: nifsco@fastenershows.com Web: fastenershows.com \ �2005 FastenerNews.com