Category: SHOT Show Front Page

SHOT Show now ranks No. 13 on largest trade show list

Trade shows are a fragile partnership between event organizer, exhibitor and attendee.  It's no secret that in the recent economy the trade show business has suffered. Trade shows that decline under 10 percent are thought to be doing well by today's standard. 

Bigger isn't always better, even though it's thought to be in most aspects of life, and no where is that more true than the trade-show business where customer experience is now paramount. 

In Trade Show Week magazine's latest rankings of the largest trade shows for the year, 2009 reveals that the SHOT Show has moved up from 22 to 13 despite a planned slight downsizing. I fully expect that the SHOT Show will crack the top ten for 2010 despite further downsizing due to the smaller venue at the Sands Expo. 

The 2011 SHOT Show will encompass approximately 656,000 net square feet of exhibit space, down from the 672,000 net square feet in 2010. The space that opens up will be dedicated to widening aisles, adding more signage and providing more common seating areas for our attendees. 

To ensure that this space is available, we are not booking any additional exhibit space for 2011 and in fact have a fairly lengthy waiting list of prospective exhibitors. For the 2012 SHOT Show we will work off a floor plan that reduces the exhibit space by another 20,000 square feet, which will again be dedicated to enhancing the experience of our customers.

Next SHOT Show live chat set for Aug. 11

If you have SHOT Show related questions or suggestions then mark your calendar for Wednesday, Aug. 11 at 2 p.m. EDT, when I’ll host our next live chat.  

Our earlier online chat drew a lot of participation, evoking more questions and comments regarding the SHOT Show than we could squeeze into the allotted half-hour. I think we answered most of the questions and let people blow off some steam about their 2010 experience by the time we signed off an hour later.    

We’re moving forward and working hard to improve your experience at the 2011 SHOT Show, so let’s not plow old ground or rehash what has already been made abundantly clear in the previous live chat. 

To help make sure that we don’t short change anyone, you can submit your questions or suggestions in advance, so that responses can be considered and created before the next chat. That will expedite the process and maximize the dialogue that can occur in the scheduled session.

The live chat is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 11 at 2 p.m. EDT, and the July edition of SHOT Show Blast will offer the details on how to participate.

In the meantime, send your questions and/or other comments in advance of the live chat so they can be considered for inclusion in the session.

Save the Date for SHOT Show University 2011

Following the standing-room-only edition of the 2010 SHOT Show University at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas, we pored over the post-SHOT Show University surveys completed by the 300 retailer attendees at the sold-out event. So we’ve made some adjustments to the curriculum and added some new topics that will feature some new speakers as well as attendee favorites.

We’ll let you know when registration opens, but, for now, simply keep open Monday, Jan. 17, 2011 — the day before the SHOT Show exhibit floor officially opens — for SHOT Show University. Here’s what NSSF Director of Business Development Randy Clark and our retailer advisory committee have lined up so far.

Planned Sessions for 2011 SHOT Show University

  • ATF Procedures: 4473 procedure, A&D books, top 10 violations during the inspection process
  • Co-op Advertising
  • Merchandising: Return on investment (ROI), sales per square foot, Plano grams, seasonal merchandising
  • Interviewing Procedures: Ask the right questions during the interview process, how to recognize and deter pitfalls during the interview process
  • Financials How-to: How to calculate open to buy; how to prepare cash-flow statements; how to figure gross markup; how to prepare profit-and-loss statements; how to calculate re-order factors; how to plan proper inventory levels
  • Shrinkage: What does it mean? How to manage external, internal and paperwork loss
  • Used-Gun Business: How to buy and market
  • Gift Cards: How to capitalize on a program that will enhance your bottom line
  • Vendor and Merchandise Analysis to Maximize Your Return on Investment
  • Invoicing and Back-Office Procedures: Includes paperwork flow, timely payment of invoices and how to recognize both discounts on invoices and areas to control shrinkage
  • Gunsmithing Opportunities: Explore the possibilities of broadening your services to your customer base
  • Add a Shooting Range: Learn the process of evaluating the addition of a range to your business
  • In-store Promotions: How to grow your customer base and your bottom line through in-store promotions
  • Receiving Procedures: Important information on checking in products, checking all entries and terminology on invoices and filing claims and returns

Got your badge scanned at an exhibitor’s booth? Retrace your steps at the 2010 SHOT Show with ‘Encore’

You saw an interesting product at the SHOT Show, but you lost the notes you took and the handouts the exhibitor gave you.  That and other scenarios where you'd like to retrace your steps at the 2010 show can be addressed by Encore, a reverse lead retrieval system.

This complimentary service provides show attendees with contact information on all of the exhibitors they visited. If your badge was scanned at an exhibitor booth, that information should be in the database. 

Every attendee who had his or her badge scanned should have already received e-mails inviting the recipient to click on a link in the e-mail that would provide access to that individual's personal list of exhibitors visited.

If you no longer have access to those e-mails, and you'd like to obtain contact information on the exhibitors you visited at the show, send an e-mail to inquiry@shot.reedexpo.com. 

Update from the Sands: New roof installation complete

To ensure the best possible SHOT Show experience for this coming year, we've asked the Sands Expo & Convention Center to provide our exhibitors and attendees with regular updates on improvements the facility is making for next year's show. The following is an update from Ashlyn LaPorte, executive director of event management for the Sands:

SHOT Show 2011 is now one month closer and we wanted to once again tell you how excited we are to have you coming back to the Sands Expo & Convention Center.

While we all know it never rains in Vegas, we wanted to share some exciting news with you. The Sands is one week away from completion of our new roof installation. That's right! While the storm of January 2010 is behind us, and we know it will never rain again, we are prepared, with a new roof to cover your head.

As we continue to improve in preparation for your return, I will update you on the many exciting changes here at the Sands. See you in January!

SHOT Show Travel Desk Up and Running

Are your ready to book into an official SHOT Show hotel, make your airline arrangements or reserve a rental car for the 2011 show? If so, then the SHOT Show Travel Desk can make it easy to get it done.

You'll get the lowest negotiated prices for lodging at the official SHOT Show hotels. All participating Show hotels offer free shuttle service to and from the show with the exception of the Venetian/Palazzo, Treasure Island, Harrah's and Imperial Palace, all of which are within walking distance of the Sands Expo & Convention Center.

The full-service travel service will also find you the best deals on airline travel and car rentals. You can reach the SHOT Show Travel Desk provider onPeak (formerly Travel Technology Group) online or by telephone, 800-388-8104.

Las Vegas in January: A Popular Choice for the SHOT Show

The following is an article from the April/May issue of SHOT Business magazine:

Las Vegas in January
The 2010 SHOT Show returned to Las Vegas in January by popular demand

By Chris Dolnack
NSSF Senior Vice President

Eighty-five percent of SHOT Show exhibitors have stressed that holding the industry's largest trade show in January is a must. A January show gives manufacturers plenty of lead time to introduce new products, get a head start on sales and ensure their products are in stores with plenty of time to spare before hunting season.

In 2008, the SHOT Show was held in February, and it turned out to be one of the lowest-rated shows in its history. This was primarily because many companies lost a whole month of sales because they weren't able to introduce new products a month earlier.

To combat this problem, the 2009 show was held in January in Orlando. That show was one of the highest-rated shows ever in our customer feedback surveys.

A majority of exhibitors, however, have continually stressed the importance of holding the show in Las Vegas. According to post-show surveys, 85 percent say the show should be held there "no matter what."

When it comes to trade shows, Las Vegas is a popular place in January. It's the most sought-after month in the trade-show business, with giants like the International Consumer Electronics Show taking first priority with local tourism officials.

We've been fortunate in the past to be able to hold the show at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the most attractive venue by far to the National Shooting Sports Foundation (owner and sponsor of the SHOT Show), as well as to a majority of exhibitors and attendees.

More than anyone, we would like to hold the show there every year. Unfortunately, we were not able to be there in 2010 and will not be able to be there for the foreseeable future due to high demand for dates in January and February.

Other than the Las Vegas Convention Center, the only venue in Las Vegas that can support the SHOT Show is the Sands Expo and Convention Center.

The NSSF held the 2010 show at the Sands because of its availability in January. The Sands had planned to have a brand-new convention center built by 2010, but that plan, like many others around the country, fell victim to the economic downturn.

Though the 2010 SHOT Show successfully set records for attendees and media, we recognize that the venue posed some challenges for everyone. We've already begun addressing those challenges and are striving to improve the SHOT Show experience next year, when we head back to the Sands.

To start, there will be more adequate signage in the exhibit halls and common areas, more seating available for dining and more information staff throughout the venue to answer questions and offer directions.

We are also working with the Sands to address other facility-related issues.

A couple of rumors making their way around the 2010 show were that the Sands is NSSF's first-choice venue and that the show was held there because the venue is less expensive.

Both could not be further from the truth. On the contrary, it would cost us a lot less to hold the show at the Las Vegas Convention Center because it is a public facility.

Another rumor was that the NSSF has contracted with the Sands for the next 10 years or more. The truth is that we are under contract for 2011 and are finalizing a contract for 2012.

We have reserved dates at the Sands for years beyond that, but we are also carefully weighing our options for future SHOT Show venues that can provide the required 1.5 million square feet of exhibit space in firearms-friendly, warm-weather cities.

We are also continuing to work with the Las Vegas Convention Center in seeking future long-term dates there.

The fact that so many in our industry want the show to be held in Las Vegas in January is understandable. Las Vegas is a first-rate entertainment destination.

Many feel the SHOT Show is at its best when it's in Las Vegas, and, judging by booth traffic and sales at the 2010 show, we'd certainly agree.

We continue to receive and monitor feedback from exhibitors, attendees and media about the 2010 show, and we are listening.

It's our goal to ensure not only that the show remains second to none, but also that all of our customers continue to be provided with a can't-miss experience each and every year.