Tag: NSSF

2014 SHOT Show Was a Hit

Records were broken at the Las Vegas trade show

Let the record show that the 2014 SHOT Show was the most successful in its 36-year history. And with an extended contract that it be housed at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, the SHOT Show’s future promises continued success and satisfaction. The 2014 SHOT Show was another one for the record books—record attendance, record sales, and record industry unity. The show also registered record satisfaction with attendees and exhibitors alike, with 75 percent of exhibitors completely or very satisfied, and 96 percent of exhibitors extremely or very likely to exhibit in 2015, according to our post–SHOT Show survey. Exhibitor satisfaction is confirmed by the record 96 percent of exhibit space renewals put under deposit onsite, and the 98 percent renewal rate we have reached within a month of the show’s conclusion.

Ditto for attendees, with 82 percent completely or very satisfied and 86 percent extremely or very likely to attend the 2015 SHOT Show. Total attendance increased 8 percent, to more than 67,000, in a year where we re-qualified attendees in the redbadge- buyer category, requiring documentation to verify purchasing authority.

All in all, the 2014 SHOT Show was a testament to the passion and enthusiasm that retailers, exhibitors, and industry associates share for our industry and the SHOT Show. It’s rewarding to know that all of our time and effort paid off, and you can rest assured that we’re working on making the 2015 SHOT Show even better.

The 2014 SHOT Show was very fortunate to have so many dedicated sponsors contribute to this record-setting year. For many of our sponsors, this is not the first time they have stepped up. Outdoor Channel marked its fourth consecutive year as the show’s Pinnacle Sponsor, the highest sponsorship level associated with the show.

Outdoor Channel’s unprecedented support of the 2014 SHOT Show demonstrates the company’s unwavering commitment to the outdoors industry and all that the industry’s premier trade show stands for.

Daniel Defense returned this year with some creative elements, including Venetian and Palazzo room key cards and pub-style tables near food vendors to facilitate quick meals and short meetings—not to mention the Daniel Defense–branded staircase in the main entry area to the Sands Expo.

Thanks, too, to Caracal for providing the shuttle service between the neighboring hotels and the show, saving many the time and money associated with taxi lines. GunBroker.com continued to be an extraordinary partner of the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the SHOT Show, sponsoring the NSSF Member Lounge and Business Center.

GunBroker .com is a great example of an NSSF member that makes the extra effort to help grow hunting and the shooting sports.

Also returning was ArmaLite as the title sponsor of the SHOT Show mobile app. This show-navigation technology enriches the SHOT Show experience for buyers and attendees, and we greatly appreciate ArmaLite’s support in this effort.

Ram Trucks returned as the official truck of SHOT Show for the third year running.

Smith & Wesson provided generous support as the Platinum Level Education Sponsor for the industry’s largest professional development opportunity for firearms retailers—SHOT Show University.

NSSF, owner and sponsor of the SHOT Show, extends its sincere thanks to all of our sponsors that contribute to its enduring success. We anticipate continued industry support in 2015.

With the Sands being an ever-improving venue, NSSF has contracted to stage the show there through 2018, adding another year to its agreement. The Sands recently completed a $37 million renovation that significantly upgraded its facilities, including redesigning and remodeling the lobby and adding escalators, new carpeting, Wi-Fi hotspots, food outlets, digital signage, and other amenities that have enhanced the trade-show experience for exhibitors and attendees. The 2014 SHOT Show is the fifth largest trade show in Las Vegas and the largest trade show of its kind in the world.

The show generates more than $73 million for the Las Vegas economy, and, more relevant to NSSF and its members, the SHOT Show provides your industry’s trade association with 80 percent of the revenue it directs during the year to promote, protect, and preserve that very industry.

Next year’s show will be held Jan. 20–23. See you there.

Chris Dolnack is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

SHOT Show Attendance Soars to New Record

View and download photos from the 2014 SHOT Show from flickr.com/photos/shotshow.

Attracting industry professionals from the United States and more than 100 other countries, the SHOT Show shattered attendance records this week, giving industry professionals good reason to believe that 2014 will be another strong year for sales of firearms, ammunition, outdoor gear and law enforcement equipment.

The 36th SHOT Show ran Jan. 14 to 17 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center. Attendance figures eclipsed last year’s total by the second day of the show and finished at more than 67,000, an increase of 5,000. “I think that really speaks to the quality of the event and the enthusiasm and passion of our industry to provide quality products for hunting, target shooting and personal and home defense,” said Chris Dolnack, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

NSSF, the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, owns and manages the SHOT Show.

The $6 billion industry has enjoyed robust sales the last several years, fueled in part by newcomers to the shooting sports who, according to an NSSF First-time Gun Buyers Report, are younger, more female and more urban based. Newcomers have identified target shooting and personal and home protection as the top reasons for purchasing their first firearm.

During the show, NSSF issued a first-of-its-kind report that confirmed the importance of the shooting sports to the U.S. economy. “Target Shooting in America: Millions of Shooters, Billions of Dollars” revealed that the money target shooters spent in 2011 resulted in $23 billion being added to the nation’s economy and supported more than 185,000 jobs nationally.

Combined data from Target Shooting in America and Hunting in America, a report released last year, shows that spending by target shooters and hunters had a total impact of more than $110 billion on the nation’s economy in 2011, supporting more than 866,000 jobs.

“Communities and businesses of all sizes benefit from these activities,” said NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti. “Our industry is proud to be an economic driver that has helped workers keep their jobs and support their families even during the most difficult economic times.”

Displays by more than 1,600 exhibiting companies filled the convention center and also rooms in the adjoining Venetian. Total show exhibition space was 635,000 net square feet, or 13 acres of product display.

Manufacturers of firearms, ammunition, optics, cutlery, apparel, accessories and law enforcement equipment introduced new products and services that retailers will offer consumers during the course of the year.

The past year was a challenging one for industry, which battled state and federal legislative efforts to restrict ownership of certain types of firearms. In addressing 2,000 industry leaders at the State of the Industry Dinner, Sanetti declared, “The State of our industry is renewed. More persons are entering the recreational shooting sports than ever before.  More hunters, more target shooters, more women, more diverse groups, more licensed gun owners and, as you all know, more firearms sales.

“Perhaps the best news of all is that, despite tremendous increases in these numbers, violent crime with firearms has decreased dramatically during the last five years, to early 1960s levels.”

Sanetti also pointed out that firearms accidents account for less than one percent of all fatal accidents in the country, according to the National Safety Council.

Safety was on display at the SHOT Show, with many companies showcasing the latest gun safes, cases and lockboxes. Also, NSSF’s national firearm safety education program, Project ChildSafe and its “Own It? Respect It. Secure It.” campaign, was highly visible at the show.

Outdoor Channel was once again the show’s Pinnacle-level sponsor.

Some of the country’s most well-known radio personalities, including Mike Gallagher and Lars Larson, broadcasted live from the show’s new “Radio Row.”

Among the many awards bestowed during the show was the NSSF Ken Sedlecky Achievement Award presented to Bob Morrison, longtime industry executive and former president and CEO of Taurus. SHOT Business magazine presented NSSF’s Sanetti with the Bonnier Outdoor Group Special Achievement Award in recognition of his industry leadership during the past year.

For the third time, NSSF hosted a charity golf event at the SHOT Show in partnership with the PGA Tour for Birdies for the Brave. The event at TPC Summerlin raised more than $100,000 for military homefront groups.

The SHOT Show is not just about selling and buying products. The show provides educational opportunities for firearms retailers at SHOT Show University and other seminars, and for law enforcement professionals at the Law Enforcement Education Program.

This was the first SHOT Show under its new management company, ConvExx.

The SHOT Show, which pumps more than $73 million into the Las Vegas economy, is committed to the Sands Expo & Convention Center through 2017. Next year’s SHOT Show is scheduled for Jan. 20-23, 2015.

SHOT Show: The Event That Keeps on Giving

The SHOT Show may only be a few days long, but its impact is year-round!

When more than 60,000 industry members converge in Las Vegas at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in January for the SHOT Show, millions of people gain the immediate benefit of the greatest show on earth for the shooting, hunting, and outdoor trade.  How’s that? You see, the SHOT Show provides NSSF with the majority of its income.

The year 2013 has been a year like no other with record-breaking sales coupled with unprecedented attacks against the shooting and hunting industry.  These attacks by headline seeking politicians and their willing accomplices in the media have upped the ante in Washington, D.C. and in an increasing number of states that threatens the very existence of our industry like never before.

NSSF has stood fast as the industry’s trade association in the face of this onslaught, promoting our industry’s lawful position on countless topics such as so called “assault weapons,” high capacity magazines, background checks for private sales, firearms safety in homes, and the shameful failure to put disqualifying mental health records in to the NICS system.

In addition, NSSF invests SHOT Show revenue in customer-recruitment campaigns, such as Families Afield and First Shots. The former has actively remedied legislative barriers preventing family hunting participation, and the latter has offered newcomers the opportunity to learn firearms and firearms ownership fundamentals at member ranges, while actually experiencing the fun of shooting under the careful supervision of qualified instructors.  Other NSSF investments of SHOT Show revenue in hunting and the shooting sports’ future come in the form of the Collegiate Shooting Sports Initiative (CSSI). CSSI helps strengthen existing collegiate varsity and club shooting programs, and it aids in the founding of new ones.

NSSF also launched Project ChildSafe, a nationwide initiative to promote firearms responsibility and provide safety education to all gun owners. Since 1998, the program has provided more than 36 million free firearm safety kits that include a gun lock to gun owners in all 50 states and five U.S. territories.

These activities of NSSF are only a sampling of the programs that are funded, in great part, by the revenue generated at the SHOT Show, a four-day event in January that’s success is felt throughout the year by millions of hunters, shooters and firearms owners. Thanks for your continued support of the SHOT Show and NSSF in our continued fight for our industry and to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports.

Chris Dolnack is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

Retailers: Getting the Most Out of SHOT Show

One of main focuses of National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) at the upcoming 2014 SHOT Show in Las Vegas is to provide educational tools for independent retailers. Thus, NSSF, owner and sponsor of the SHOT Show, is offering a schedule of information-packed classes from ATF compliance to range operations to maximizing your sales per square foot. These classes were designed to meet the needs of the new retailer while providing information and an opportunity to network for the veteran firearms merchant. Here are some highlights.

MONDAY, JAN. 13
SHOT SHOW UNIVERSITY

  • On the day before the exhibit floor opens, NSSF hosts the premier education seminar for the firearms retailer. This day-long event starts with a keynote delivered by Dan Mann, founder of the Mann Group. He’ll address “Strategies that Grow Revenue (and Profit) Even During Lean Times,” which will identify proven sales processes that maximize both revenue and the potential of each customer once he or she is in the store. Ann Baldwin will deliver a presentation on “Media and Crisis Training,” preparing retailers and range owners for any emergency that might arise that would cause the media to come calling. Then we will be offering four different educational tracks: ATF Compliance; Retail Operations; Marketing; and Range Operations. Each track will offer five courses that cover various aspects of the main topic. The seminar will close with an address by Dr. Chip Bell entitled “Strategies for Creating Growth and Bottom Line Impact,” which will draw upon Dr. Bell’s decades of work helping leading brands stay ahead of the competition by maintaining world-class customer-experience strategies.

The learning doesn’t stop with the start of the SHOT Show; NSSF has classes planned throughout the show.

TUESDAY, JAN. 14
RETAILER SEMINARS, ATF COMPLIANCE SESSIONS

  • The following day, NSSF will be hosting classes on “Grass Roots Political Organizing” so our retailers can learn how to protect their rights and their industry by organizing at the state and local level. The next session will cover “Building a Gunsmith,” presented by instructors from Montgomery Community College. They will discuss the training that they provide the modern gun-smith, and how, as a retailer, you can take advantage of their skill set to build your business. The next class is “New Customers: How to Attract, Engage, and Retain Them,” which covers the techniques that two of the top independent retailers have used to meet the needs of the younger and more diverse customer base with which firearms retailers are dealing today. Two ATF compliance courses round out the day. “NFA Compliance” will review how to legally sell one of the hottest commodities in the firearms industry, and we will close the day with our NSSF FFL Compliance Consultant panel, hosted by two former ATF executives. They will conduct an open discussion on any ATF-related compliance questions.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 15
INCREASING SALES, AND MARKETING TO WOMEN

  • The SHOT Show continues its formal educational program with a presentation on “Increasing Your Sales per Square Foot and Inventory Turns.” This program will be presented by two of the nation’s top independent retailers and will cover their strategies to maximize store space and inventory while meeting their customers’ needs. The next session is a panel discussion with seven of the top women in the firearms industry covering the do’s and don’ts of marketing to women.

THURSDAY, JAN. 16
FOUR DIVERSE, VALUABLE CLASSES

  • The formal educational programs at SHOT Show will wrap up with an exciting and diverse lineup of sessions, beginning with “What Business Structure Is Right for My Business?” presented by two partners from the Renzulli Law Firm. “Loss-Prevention Strategies” are covered in the next session to help ensure the longevity of your business. The next seminar, “Store Layout,” will cover techniques used by two world-class retailers that can help you provide the best customer experience while maximizing your return on investment. The day will wrap up with “Hiring and Retaining Employees,” which will cover best practices to retain your most valuable asset— your personnel.

A goal for NSSF at the SHOT Show is to provide a world-class educational experience so retailers can maximize profits while meeting the needs of their customers. For more information about these programs, please visit shotshow .org/education.

12 Tips to Get the Most Out of the 2014 SHOT Show

Are you ready? The SHOT Show is almost here! Here’s a list of the top 12 items you can check off. Introduce yourself to the offerings by watching this brief video, first.

1. It’s your last chance to book your travel plans with onPeak, the official housing partner of the SHOT Show. Its hotel rate-guarantee deadline closes tomorrow, Wednesday, Dec. 11. SHOT Show provides two sources for special hotel room opportunities; one is direct with the Venetian/Palazzo, and the other is through onPeak, the official housing partner of the SHOT Show and the service provider directly linked to the SHOT Show website for all hotels besides the Venetian/Palazzo. To view or book available hotel/travel deals through onPeak, click here or call 800-388-8104. To view or book available hotel rooms at the Venetian/Palazzo, you may do so by clicking here or calling 866-580-1198.

2. Tell us if you are hosting celebrities in January. Log in to the Exhibitor Listing Dashboard and let us know about celebrity appearances or other special events you are planning at your booth. Follow the provided screenshots to inform us of celebrity appearances.

3. Register for SHOT Show University on Monday, Jan. 13. A limited amount of seats are available. Offered each year on the day before the SHOT Show opens, SHOT Show University, with a theme of Aiming for Excellence, is a day of seminars specifically tailored to the needs of those in the firearm retail business.  Check out our speaker spotlights from Chip Bell and Dan Mann.

4. Find the retail seminars you need to attend. Retailers, Patrick Shay gives you an inside look at these scheduled sessions. Stay tuned for the follow-up and get the run-down of what should be on your schedule! We are offering a dozen courses (at cost) during the SHOT Show, all designed to increase your retailing expertise, make your operations more profitable and keep our industry strong. You can view the full schedule of speakers and topics here. Seating is limited, and classes are filling up fast. Don’t miss out!

5. Reserve the ultimate dining experience. Check out our “SHOT on a Dime” restaurant guide aimed to help you find quality meals in Las Vegas for $50 or less. If you are dining on a budget, you can even choose from dining options of $25 or less. No matter your cuisine preference or desired location, you’ll find all sorts of selections.

6. Work smarter, not harder! First, download the mobile app, sponsored by ArmaLite. Then, use the My Show Planner online aid to navigate the show floor, keep track of appointments and find new products and services, among other conveniences. You can review the entire SHOT Show layout, search for exhibitors, find specials, search for brands and much more. You can even map out your own planned schedule and route!

7.  Learn about the scheduled Law Enforcement Education Seminars (LEEP). NSSF has partnered with Law Officer magazine to present a quality education program for law enforcement professionals at the 2014 SHOT Show®. These are free for our LEEP sponsors.

8. Catch up on all three segments of the SHOT Show Exhibitor Webinar series, available online in the Exhibitor Resource Center under Exhibitor Education and News.

9. Get to know this year’s pinnacle sponsor, Outdoor Channel.

10. Meet the  new management team. You can read all of the bios, here. The firearms, exhibition and event industries, as well as the Las Vegas business community, continue to respond positively to the selection of Las Vegas-based ConvExx as our new SHOT Show management company.

11. Become an NSSF member. As the owner of the industry’s largest trade show, NSSF rolls out the red carpet for its members at the SHOT Show. Members receive discounted booth space, five extra booth-priority points when exhibiting, early notification on registration and hotel accommodations, access to the NSSF Member Lounge and Member Business Center and more. NSSF is currently offering a SHOT Show special for range and retailer memberships, starting as low as $50.

12. Get social. Follow us and subscribe to get the latest SHOT Show updates. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter (@nssfshotshow) and join the official SHOT Show group on LinkedIn. Also, be sure utilize the #SHOTShow hashtag to ensure your social media communications are being seen by all who follow the show online. Another way to keep up-to-date is to subscribe to NSSF’s Bullet Points e-newsletter, which delivers a weekly roundup of industry happenings.

Diedra Cauley is the Senior Director of Exhibitions and Conferences for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow her on Twitter at @dcauley.

ArmaLite Is Title Sponsor of SHOT Mobile App

ArmaLite Inc., the internationally known manufacturer of AR-10, M-15, AR-30 and AR-50 rifles, has returned as the title sponsor of SHOT Mobile for the 2014 SHOT Show®.

The SHOT Mobile app allows show attendees to search for exhibitors, navigate the show floor by using interactive maps, find new products, learn about show specials, view the show’s education schedule such as for SHOT Show University, set up appointments with exhibitors, request callbacks and find show services.

The app will be made available just prior to the 2014 SHOT Show.

With its renewed sponsorship, ArmaLite joins Outdoor Channel and GunBroker.com as major industry supporters of the SHOT Show.

“We are extremely pleased that ArmaLite will be the title sponsor of SHOT Mobile,” said Chris Dolnack, NSSF Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. “This show-navigation technology enriches the SHOT Show experience for buyers and attendees. We greatly appreciate ArmaLite’s support in this effort.”

“ArmaLite used the 2013 SHOT Mobile app’s messaging system on Days 1 and 2 of the show to invite attendees to our booth for free tickets to the Day 3 raffle of our new AR-30A1 rifle,” said ArmaLite Communications Director Arthur Steadman. “Thousands of enthusiastic people crammed our booth — and much of the surrounding show floor — for the Thursday raffle. This year, we’re bringing a bullhorn for the raffle!”

In recognition of ArmaLite’s continued support, the company’s logo will be featured on the splash screen of the SHOT Mobile app, on the SHOT Mobile webpage at www.shotshow.org and in the app download section of iTunes, in addition to the company receiving other sponsorship and text-messaging advantages.

The SHOT Show is owned and sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, and is produced and managed by ConvExx. The show is the largest of its kind in the world, attracting more than 60,000 attendees and 1,600 companies exhibiting firearms, ammunition, outdoor apparel, law enforcement, optics, cutlery and related products and services.

ArmaLite has one of the broadest product lines in the firearms industry. ArmaLite manufactures and sells semiautomatic rifles in a variety of calibers including 5.56mm and 7.62mm, long range super-accurate bolt action rifles in calibers including .308 Winchester, .300 Winchester Magnum, .338 Lapua, and 50 BMG, and classic 9mm pistols.

Chris Dolnack is senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack. 

GunBroker.com Returns as Exclusive Sponsor of NSSF Member Lounge and Business Center at SHOT Show

GunBroker.com, the world’s largest online auction site for firearms and related accessories, will return as exclusive sponsor of the NSSF® Member Lounge and Business Center for the 2014 SHOT Show®.

“GunBroker.com continues to be an extraordinary partner of NSSF and the SHOT Show,” commented Chris Dolnack, senior vice president and chief marketing officer. “GunBroker.com is a great example of an NSSF member that makes the extra effort to help grow hunting and the shooting sports, from supporting the SHOT Show and the Shooting Sports Summit to distributing NSSF’s “Pull the Trigger” newsletter to its list of nearly one million opt-in email subscribers. GunBroker.com’s SHOT Show sponsorship demonstrates the company’s commitment to all that the industry’s premier trade show stands for.”

NSSF members will find free wireless service among many other amenities in the NSSF Member Lounge and Business Center, which serves as a central point for NSSF members to take a break from the show floor or to network and conduct business.

“Throughout our history, GunBroker.com has strived to be an effective partner of those organizations that are working in support of our hunting and shooting sports industry,” commented Steve Urvan, GunBroker.com founder and CEO. “Clearly, the National Shooting Sports Foundation is a leader in those efforts and we are proud to return as the exclusive sponsor of the NSSF Member’s Lounge and Business Center and to seeing our fellow NSSF members at the show. Indeed, I would like to take this opportunity to urge any SHOT Show exhibitor that is not a member of NSSF to make a point of coming on board before the 2014 SHOT Show,” Urvan said.

The SHOT Show is owned by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, and is produced and managed by ConvExx. The show is the largest of its kind in the world, attracting nearly 60,000 attendees and more than 1,600 companies exhibiting firearms, ammunition, outdoor apparel, law enforcement, optics, cutlery and related products and services.

GunBroker.com provides marketers of hunting and shooting sports equipment with extraordinary exposure to an active audience averaging 3 million unique visitors each month. GunBroker.com is a member and active supporter of NSSF and is the official host site for each year’s SHOT Show Auction.

The NSSF Member Lounge and Business Center sponsored by GunBroker.com will be located in the Venetian Hotel, Level 3, Lido Ballroom. The Venetian Hotel adjoins the Sands Expo Convention Center.

Chris Dolnack is senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

SHOT Show University Line-up Announced

Sign up now for the 2014 edition of SHOT Show University, held the day before the SHOT Show exhibit hall opens. This year’s theme is “Aiming for Excellence” and includes a keynote speaker, interactive sessions and a lineup of classes offer unparalleled training and education to operate businesses more effectively. Specialty tracks allow attendees to quickly identify sessions they want to attend: ATF Compliance, Marketing, Retail Operations and Range Operations.

On Monday, Jan. 13, the National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF) hosts THE premier educational series of seminars for firearms retailers and range operators. This daylong event features an incredible lineup of notable experts delivering information to take back to your operation and glean money-saving, business-building tips.

Retailers slow on the trigger have missed out before when trying to register for this perennial sell-out. Don’t wait. View the schedule of speakers and topics, then register and claim one of the still-available seats.

Chris Dolnack is senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

SHOT Show Update – Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed

Las VegasSince we last gathered at the Sands Expo in January, it’s been an exciting and challenging year for the industry as a whole, and in particular for your industry’s trade association and its signature event—the SHOT Show. Throughout the process, our focus has been to maintain continuity for our exhibitors and attendees while delivering a continuously improving SHOT Show experience.

In May, NSSF ended its 30-plus-year association with Reed Exhibitions. After a thorough national search involving the trade show industry’s top management companies, we named Las Vegas–based ConvExx as our new show management partner for the next three years. ConvExx is privately held and has produced more than 200 shows and events, including the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show. Trade Show Executive magazine ranks the SEMA Show as the fourth-largest trade show in North America (SHOT Show is ranked 16th), with 2,250 exhibitors, 135,000 attendees, and more than 1 million net square feet of exhibit space.

ConvExx offers a unique combination of extensive large-show and Las Vegas experience, which will serve our exhibitors and attendees well. Rest assured that ConvExx is a pro–Second Amendment organization. We wouldn’t have selected them otherwise.

We have also struck a new five-year agreement with our long-time partners at Freeman as the official exposition services contractor for the SHOT Show. This new agreement with Freeman provides our exhibitors with the best-in-class services and cost certainty.

Freeman is the leading global partner for integrated marketing solutions for live engagements. It produces more than 4,300 expositions annually, including 135 of the 250 largest U.S. trade shows, and 11,000 other events worldwide. What’s more, the Freeman family is made up of avid hunters and shooters.

Also in May, NSSF selected CSG Creative as its agency of record for marketing the 2014 SHOT Show. CSG was selected at the conclusion of a national account review that included a number of well-known trade-show marketing agencies. Their experience in the trade-show and face-toface event business is unparalleled, and we have enjoyed working with them to make the 2014 SHOT Show the best event yet.

Based in Alexandria, Virginia, CSG Creative is a strategic marketing and creative agency with unparalleled insight into event promotion, branding, and strategy development. Its award-winning creative staff, stellar service, and innovative approaches have made CSG one of the premier agencies in trade-show, conference, and event promotion. We’re confident that our new SHOT Show website and new attendee promotion campaign, combined with our participation in the U.S. Department of Commerce International Buyer Program, will deliver new qualified buyers for our exhibitors.

We’ve also reached new agreements with our official housing partner onPeak, our registration services provider CompuSystems, and our mobile app developer Sherpa. All have done a great job for us, and we look forward to working with them to make the SHOT Show the industry’s “must-attend” event.

Here’s what’s in store for you. You’ll receive the same outstanding customer service you’ve come to expect from NSSF and the SHOT Show, and enjoy the comfortable familiarity of our registration and housing systems. There will be additional newly designed, high-impact signage to help you find your way around, including arrows pointing to the main hall exits on Level 1 and Level 2.

Retailers will have more opportunities to learn new skills and take innovative ideas back to their stores from SHOT Show University and our expanded retailer education seminars. In addition, select retail buyers will be invited to participate in a hands-on shooting range experience on opening morning.

The Law Enforcement Education Program will begin the day before the show opening, providing LE professionals with the opportunity to earn continuing education unit credits while learning from nationally recognized experts.

Outdoor Channel has returned as the Pinnacle Sponsor of the 2014 SHOT Show and will be providing attendees with amenities such as mobile-device-charging stations and Internet hotspots. State of the Industry Dinner attendees will be treated to a performance by renowned illusionists and Second Amendment supporters Penn and Teller, courtesy of Outdoor Channel.

The 2014 SHOT Show is just too good to miss. I hope to see you in Las Vegas.

Chris Dolnack is senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

CSG Creative Named Marketing Agency of Record for SHOT Show

NSSF has selected CSG Creative as its agency of record for marketing the 2014 SHOT Show®. CSG was selected at the conclusion of a national account review that included a number of well-known trade show marketing agencies.

We’re pleased to partner with CSG. Their experience in the trade show and face-to-face event business is unparalleled, and we look forward to working with them to make the 2014 SHOT Show the best event yet.

Based in Alexandria, Va., CSG Creative is a strategic marketing and creative agency with unparalleled insight into event promotion, branding and strategy development. Its award-winning creative, stellar service and innovative approaches have made CSG one of the premier agencies in trade show, conference and event promotion.

“CSG Creative is pleased to be selected as the strategic marketing agency for the SHOT Show,” said Paige Cardwell, CSG president. “The trade show industry holds the show in high regard for delivering a must-attend event experience that truly supports all aspects of the shooting sports industry. We are looking forward to working with the SHOT Show team to enhance their marketing initiatives in target and emerging markets.”

The 2014 SHOT Show will be held Jan. 14-17 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas.

Chris Dolnack is senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.