I’d personally like to thank everyone out there that served as our eyes and ears in regard to suitcasing and outboarding at this year’s SHOT Show. Thanks to your efforts, a number of suitcasers and outboarders were shown the door after interfering with the day-to-day business of our paying customers at the show.
If you haven’t heard before, suitcasing and outboarding are unethical parasitic business practices in which non-exhibitors attempt to gain access to trade show attendees and/or exhibitors. These practices skirt the support of the organizer and the industry.
Suitcasing is when non-exhibiting companies or persons go to shows as an attendee to “work the aisles” from their suitcase (briefcase) and solicit business in the aisles or lobby area. Outboarding is when non-exhibiting companies set up exhibits at off-site locations — hotel hospitality suites or restaurants — and encourage show attendees to spend time with them off the show floor
Here are just a couple of incidents from the 2012 SHOT Show:
- A man with more chutzpah than smarts ingeniously procured a table from somewhere on the show floor and set up a makeshift booth against the wall on Level 1. It didn’t last long, though. He was reported to our suitcasing team and he was swiftly shown the door.
- A foreign national, who traveled quite a ways across the world to attend, was repeatedly spotted suitcasing on the show floor. He was reported by multiple attendees and was last seen enjoying the hospitality of Homeland Security.
The list goes on.
Besides for suitcasing, illegal activities reported at the show included trademark infringement — and we even nabbed someone trying to sell their SHOT Show set-up badge on Craigslist. Las Vegas Metro undercover detectives met the would-be scalper under the bus/taxi portico and placed him under arrest.
The SHOT Show is definitely not the place to engage in these activities. Much of our security team is made up of off-duty and retired Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Clark County Sheriff’s Department personnel. Not to mention, nearly 100 personnel from an alphabet soup assortment of federal law enforcement agencies are roaming floor in an enforcement capacity throughout the show. And what’s more we offer a cash reward to hotel personnel who turn in outboarders setting up shop within our hotel block.
Again, we thank everyone for keeping an eye out and reporting these activities. Our paying customers deserve the best, and by keeping these unethical business practices at bay, it’s just another way we can ensure the SHOT Show experience remains second to none.
So basically if you don’t buy a booth or pay your dues you can’t do business at the Shot Show? I have purchased my badge and have attendant several shot show’s through the years and have customers that are attendees. Based on what you have described I would certainly fall in that category? The shot show has been an excellent format allowing me to meet existing clients and also generate new business for my firm and hope to continue to do so in years to come
Terencehahn….you are doing exactly what they want to outlaw for obvious reasons. I also attend (non-exhibitor) and visit my clients (exhibitors) and discuss business, but I do not troll the floor soliciting. A complaint I have against the Shot Show organizers is that all booth space is sold out, then why are there booths selling pet food and barbeque grills when firearms industry people are on a waiting list???
We’rre working on weeding out the non-core exhibitors as we’ve outlined here numerous times. Sporting dogs are however an important segment according to our attendees. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be allowed to exhibit.
Glad to see the riff raff is being kept out. Good job! Add another set of eyes to next years show. See you there!
Thanks so much!
Kudos to this article. While attending the SHOT show, I was wondering what “No Suitcasing” meant because I was towing a little bag on rollers so I have a means of carrying all the catalogs I collect from knife manufacturers. Having pull along is a must for me as a left arm amputee. Now I know the correct meaning of “Suitcasing”. Nice to know that the SHOT show staff is on the ball as to illegal activity. SHOT is a great event and I’m privileged to live in Las Vegas and be able to attend. I think it’s despicable that there are denizens out there interested only in personal illegal gain that is damaging to legit attendees and exibitors. Keep throwing the bums out,they’re not missed.
Thanks for the kind words Bernardo!
Booth space is limited – several firms (particularly new startups) cannot get booth space at SHOT. Maybe if NSSF chose a venue with adequate space, you’d see less of this problem…
Adequate space? The SHOT Show is huge. Even large booths can get lost in the mix.
As we’ve stated numerous times, the only larger venues available to us are in New Orleans, Louisville or Orlando. We had more than 100 new exhibitors this year and hope to have 100 more new exhibitors next year.
”
We had more than 100 new exhibitors this year “.100 more exhibitors? Ha-ha, you are so funny. Can you tell us how many new exhibitors ShotSHOW REJECT? How manny CANNOT take part because Shot Show have no place for them? And they MUST (but dobt want) to be a ”
suitcasers and outboarders “! Just try to look to situation not from ShotShow side, but from side of these startup companies.
Guest – Name a loaction that has unlimited floor space.
Nobody’s talking about unlimited, but if there are larger spaces available in New Orleans, Orlando, and Louisville, what’s the sense in keeping the show in Vegas? If NSSF can do better, what’s their excuse for choosing not to?
So if there are larger spaces available in no less than 3 other cities, why is the show still in Las Vegas?
l have been to the Vegas show twice the 0ne show in New Orleans and 2 shows in Orlando. I set up as an Exhibitor in Orlando and an attendee at the rest of the shows. I will never attend another shot in Vegas your layout is too jammed up there. The best show I attended was New Orleans where the entire show is on 1 FLOOR and its such a great venue, why not there anymore and the Orlando show has the space for sooo much stuff and is also a great venue. Is it that there is more gambling and hookers there or what. I can’t see why its always going to be there, it can’t be cheaper to do there then New Orleans or Orlando , sorry for the rant but your Vegas shows SUCK .
I’m a bit confused – as a writer for a major magazine, I have in the past attended and looked for items of interest to write about, passing out my business cards – does that fell into “suitcasing”? I am clearly soliciting bussness from the isles, but I had thought publicity was one of the things the your exhibitors wanted?
I cerainly don’t want to be ejected – or arrested.
As a member of the media working on developing editorial copy that is not suitcasing. And there is no law against suitcasing although it is a crime in Las Vegas to use a sleeping room for commercial purposes (outboarding).
You’ve got to be kidding!!!! As a member of the ‘small’ subsidizing manufacturers to larger ‘member’ organizations, and having on all occasions been requested by them to attend for discussions of design, prototyping, and short run production for their use, you are telling me I am suitcasing! Most of us are legitimate contributors to the shooting sports. Most of us have on numerous occasions tried to obtain booth space. You are now telling us we are ‘suitcasers’ if we are there to serve your ‘legitimate’ members? That’s rediculous! You need another catagory of ‘attendees’ to which we may legitimately say we are contributors. Your catagory of ‘non-exhibiting manufacture’ is apparently not sufficient. I have attended the Shot Show continously, both as a ‘legitimate’ member while serving for one as vice-president of that company, and respectively, representing my new company. I certainly do not wish to be considered a ‘scalb’ after serving and promoting this industry for the 18 years. If by chance or otherwise, we discover ‘legitimate’ exhibiting members who may have need of our services to enhance their product lines, and leave a business card for contact ‘post’ shot show, are we ‘suitcasers’? We need the answers to these question please!