SHOW NEWS: Las Vegas Now Largest Fastener Show as Columbus Attendance Drops 33.9%

John Wolz

Total registration for the 2000 National Industrial Fastener Show & Conference in Columbus, OH, dropped by more than one-third from 4,899 in 1999 to 3,240 this year, according to numbers released by show management.
The decline costs the 20-year-old Columbus the �World�s Largest Fastener Show� attendance title. Show management�s total for the third West version of the show last November in Las Vegas was 3,800. Show principal Jim Bannister has predicted attendance would be 4,500 this November.
Las Vegas also is approaching a sellout of its 500 available booths for the November 17, 2000, show, which would eclipse the 475 booths at Columbus this year.
Exhibitor staff registration for the May 9, 2000, Columbus show again outnumbered the total of advance and on-site registered attendees. According to show management, exhibit personnel registration totaled 1,670 vs. 1,570 attendee registrations.
The breakdown of attendee registrations listed 910 distributors, 26 importers, 197 manufacturers, 234 manufacturer reps, 3 from the media and 177 �other.�
Show management�s numbers for both the Columbus and Las Vegas events include advance and on-site registrations. Trade show experts find that a majority of those registering in advance may not actually attend.
Neither show has used a verified attendance system to determine actual attendance figures, and neither has been audited by an independent trade show quality assurance program.
Both shows are owned by Bannister and Mike McGuire and managed by Bannister & Associates.
Distributor attendance at Columbus peaked in 1995 at 1,753, and the highest total attendance was 5,326 in 1998.
The 4th annual West show will be held on Friday, November 17, 2000, at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.
The National Fastener Distributors Association will hold its fall conference November 15-16. The NFDA program includes a keynote address by Colin Powell.
The Western Association of Fastener Distributors will conduct educational conference sessions on November 16.
The 21st annual Columbus events are scheduled May 21-23, 2001, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
For information on the Columbus or Las Vegas shows contact general manager Gloria Crase. Tel: 614 895-1279. Fax 614 895-3466. E-mail: nifsco@fastenershows.com