The Europeans and I were not alone. Here are a couple of comments from this side of the pond:
I must say that we have been experiencing this exact scenario for years. As you know, we were the very first “direct” European manufacturer in North America. (Our) name and image required a professional booth and the lack of market presence (especially in the US) required us to bring a lot of product and personnel to fill our 20 x 40/50 space. The fact that we needed to attend 4 shows (IPI, PIE, CPA & NPA) created a tremendous amount of financial burden with limited or no return.
Can you imagine how your Euro friends would feel if they had done it for 10-15 years??
The other guys (Large US Manufacturers) although experiencing the same dilemma had sales well in excess of ours to help support the burden. This is one of the reasons we decided to claw back on adverts and trade shows.
Or this one:
The vendors are the main reason I attend the IPI shows. It seems that every year the sessions are nothing but rehashed and thinly veiled infomercials from the same people and companies over and over and over again. With the exception of the round table discussions, while it may seem fresh and rewarding for newbies to the industry, those of us who have been around for a while find it quite tedious. Is it too late to recommend a cage match between Duncan and ACS? How about a competition themed after one of those Japanese game shows? Manufacturers performing timed industry related tasks on their own equipment (like cashiering 10 cars or writing 10 parking tickets) and the slowest contestant dropped into a vat of mud? While we’re at it, why leave the end-users out of the fun? I know that a parking related Jeopardy style quiz show involving pies to the face for wrong answers would keep me glued to my seat. One thing’s for certain, I really should try and avoid posting comments on a hangover induced Saturday morning.
There are more along this vein. I have changed the names to protect the innocent.
JVH
