Retailers, Manufacturers, Industry Types

[Chadd 916]

Any predictions?

Since I grew up outside of Beantown, my prediction is I'll be staying with my buddy while attending the Boston show. :P

Since the IHIA has all of the manufacturers, the dealers don't have a choice what show they have to attend. It's typical for this industry to have the manufacturers driving the retailers to do what is in the best interest of the manufacturers. It's also absolutely backwards.

I'll be at the Black Rose when I'm not at the show.

[Jason Harris 31]

Since the IHIA has all of the manufacturers, the dealers don't have a choice what show they have to attend. It's typical for this industry to have the manufacturers driving the retailers to do what is in the best interest of the manufacturers. It's also absolutely backwards.

I agree, but it's a little like that political thread we had last week -- I'm not allowed to admit it!

[Jason Harris 31]

or another one that I know is being planned for New England during the Frozen Four regionals.

do you know where in new england that is going to be

I just heard word that the Hockey Expo New England is definite for March 25-26, 2006 at the DCU Center in Worcester. It will be in conjunction with the NCAA Regionals. The preliminery idea is ticket holders to the games will be able to go to the Expo for free, while others will have to buy tickets at the door.

I only know about this because my rep in New England, Got Puck? Promotions, is the company that will be staging the Expo. He said he hopes to have his website up by the end of the month: Hockey Expo New England

[sryhockeyguy 0]

Vancouver? That would kick ass. Everyone would love it.

[Chadd 916]

Vancouver? That would kick ass. Everyone would love it.

It's a beautiful city but that's not a reasonable option.

[sryhockeyguy 0]

QUOTE (sryhockeyguy @ Jun 14 2005, 08:20 PM)

Got a point there...

[Jim A 4]

so we'll see a lot of Mid Atlantic, New England, Ontario and Quebec area shops at the show while most of the smaller and mid level across N. America that could talk themselves into Vegas will now pre book beforehand and save themselves 500-1000 bucks a person...so maybe that's good for the industry..they put it back into their shops..maybe do a little more marketing...

I like how the industry is all of a sudden going to grow the game...its not a hard concept to introduce people to the sport and not overly hard to make happen, but it does require time, committment and $, in addition to the blood, sweat and tears...I hope it works, a good Mike Whan quote from a couple years back was "Life gives you the test first and the lesson later" ...and its completely apropos in this case..

[Jason Harris 31]

so we'll see a lot of Mid Atlantic, New England, Ontario and Quebec area shops at the show while most of the smaller and mid level across N. America that could talk themselves into Vegas will now pre book beforehand and save themselves 500-1000 bucks a person...so maybe that's good for the industry..they put it back into their shops..maybe do a little more marketing...

I like how the industry is all of a sudden going to grow the game...its not a hard concept to introduce people to the sport and not overly hard to make happen, but it does require time, committment and $, in addition to the blood, sweat and tears...I hope it works, a good Mike Whan quote from a couple years back was "Life gives you the test first and the lesson later" ...and its completely apropos in this case..

I don't know, Jim.

It's fairly obvious these two groups don't get along any longer, but it seems the IHIA has the edge with the larger manufacturers. I've received email updates from LPH detailing who's signed up to exhibit, but I only recognize about five of the thirty names, with the two most recognizeable being Renfrew Tape and T3K.

Given the conflicting dates, exhibitors can only choose one show. My suspicion is most manufacturers who are aware there are two shows will choose the show where the Big Boys are, since that increases the odds that the buyers will be there.

Really, squabbling aside, that is the only thing that should matter from the IHIA's perspective -- what increases the attendence at the show? Not, "Let's tell the retailers where we're going to hold our show"; rather, "Let's ask our retailers where and when they'd like us to hold our show, and we'll schedule it with the hopes of maximizing attendence."

However, given the circumstances, it's apparent the dates and location were chosen strategically. And, if the Top 10 manufacturers in the industry are going to be at a particular location, then I think all of the smaller players -- buyers or sellers -- are probably going to have to follow suit.

[Chadd 916]

I would argue that increased attendance isn't their objective. I can't imagine that a large percentage of dealers asked for it to be on a weekend in Boston in early January. It couldn't be less convenient for a lot of small shops.

It really doesn't benefit the larger manufacturers to have a show. Without the show a lot of dealers would never find out how good the gear is from smaller manufacturers. Because the larger guys won't go if it isn't thier show, there won't be any show other than the one they produce.

[Jason Harris 31]

The following was in an email I received today regarding the IHIA show. The truth is it's been dueling emails, but one side may have more bullets.

"Many industry leading suppliers have already committed to the One Goal Hockey Show. Some of these are:

Reebok/CCM-The Hockey Company

Bauer Nike Hockey

Mission-Itech

TPS Hockey

Dupliskate-Sanisport

Sherwood

Inglasco

DR Sports

Cag One

Blackstone

Leading Buying Groups have also come forward. For instance, Source for Sports, Play it Again Sports and Sports Excellence have already begun to submit their meeting room needs."

[Chadd 916]

It was a no brainer that IHIA would win. They have all of the big manufacturers and I'm sure it was planned in conjunction with the CSGA. It still sucks for a lot of US dealers.

[sogaduch 0]

so im guessin theres no show in toronto this january. itll be in boston

[awall 0]

For international buyers, Vegas is a good option. Ideally you'd want a Vegas equivalent with an NHL franchise. By Vegas equivalent I mean relatively cheap, easy to get around, warm, and has other attractions. What is LA like for conventions? It's warm, and has two NHL franchises. I don't know much about the place, so maybe there are good reasons not to have it there though.

I'm not in the business, but I would like to offer another city as a possible option. Why not Dallas or Fort Worth, Texas? We have a nice big airport with convention space close by, there was a new large hotel opened up in Grapevine that might have good space. We have an NHL team. The weather is good year round, but can be a bit warm in the summertime, late august. Heck, if you wanted to hold it in Dallas proper you could probably get the City to suckup a little. There are also some rinks close by that you could probably acquire for ice time if you needed it.

[Chadd 916]

so im guessin theres no show in toronto this january. itll be in boston

There wasn't supposed to be one in Toronto this year.

[sogaduch 0]

so im guessin theres no show in toronto this january. itll be in boston

There wasn't supposed to be one in Toronto this year.

my bad, thought there was. guess i wun be goin to boston :(

[Chadd 916]

so im guessin theres no show in toronto this january. itll be in boston

There wasn't supposed to be one in Toronto this year.

my bad, thought there was. guess i wun be goin to boston :(

I mean there wasn't supposed to be one in 2005 until some of the buying groups forced it. There was no Vegas show in 2004 so there would only be one show that all of the manufacturers had to attend. In 2005 it was supposed to be Vegas-only but too many Canadian groups complained, so one was put together. Now, it's going to be inconvenient for everyone but the manufacturers and a handful of dealers.

[Jim A 4]

I'm not in the business, but I would like to offer another city as a possible option. Why not Dallas or Fort Worth, Texas? We have a nice big airport with convention space close by, there was a new large hotel opened up in Grapevine that might have good space.

Having flown out of DFW more than 15 times this year, flights in/out of the area aren't conducive to a lot of budgets, compared to other major cities..it a pretty volatile market..i watched a 14 day RT from NY go from 255 to 442 to 700 in just 3 days and all within that 14 day advance...i'd say 80% of my flights have wound up being through site59.com etc this year just for it to be feasible and I've even taken some long drives instead to cut down on the costs..

[Chadd 916]

Intersting email just arrived.

Warrior will have a major presence at The Let’s Play Hockey International Expo in Las Vegas, Jan. 9-11, 2006 as the company launches its complete new product line under a new division called Warrior Hockey. Warrior Hockey will have retail distribution in the stick category targeted for the 2006 hockey season in North America and Europe.

I wonder if they're skipping Boston or doing both shows.

[Jason Harris 31]

I saw that.

I wonder whether their marketing people aren't aware there are two shows. Maybe they had heard the hockey show is in Vegas, so they did a google and found Let's Play Hockey.

It will be interesting to see how this evolves. Every major company except Easton has committed to the IHIA, and yet some companies are still signing up with LPH. It really makes one wish the sides could have figured how to work together. It would make the show better for everybody. More companies, more attendees, more buzz.

[modernice 0]

I heard a great suggestion for the Hockey Trade Show.(of which there should only be one!) Have it roam, in conjunction with the NHL ALL-STAR game. Why not?? built-in hockey fun and entertainment. Free Tickets to All-Star game with exhibitor package.

I am not pinned to going to the same place yeare after year. Vegas was getting tired and my winter passion is hockey, so why not travel to a hockey destination like Boston, Montreal or Vancouver.

Toronto, been there done that, let's see the great cities of the NHL- North and South!

Also, I am all for the new IHIA show being a charity based event for the grassroots program "One Goal"

I have high expectations for One Goal, and will be analyzing there motives and following that trail of charity monies like a hawk, so that there is no offside behaviour on the part of the IHIA and the big five hockey companies. Ultimately, it's them that are accountable.

GB

[Chadd 916]

I heard a great suggestion for the Hockey Trade Show.(of which there should only be one!) Have it roam, in conjunction with the NHL ALL-STAR game. Why not?? built-in hockey fun and entertainment. Free Tickets to All-Star game with exhibitor package.

I am not pinned to going to the same place yeare after year. Vegas was getting tired and my winter passion is hockey, so why not travel to a hockey destination like Boston, Montreal or Vancouver.

Toronto, been there done that, let's see the great cities of the NHL- North and South!

Also, I am all for the new IHIA show being a charity based event for the grassroots program "One Goal"

I have high expectations for One Goal, and will be analyzing there motives and following that trail of charity monies like a hawk, so that there is no offside behaviour on the part of the IHIA and the big five hockey companies. Ultimately, it's them that are accountable.

GB

Having the show during the all star game will make the hotel rooms hard to find and expensive for retailers, same with flights. Not that the IHIA care about the retailers.

[modernice 0]

good points, however, every trip for retailers and exhibtors will be expensive.

An All-Star games does not usually put a strain on rooms as they cater to the host destination fans.

The All-Star game might be a bit late tho' for the purpose of buying...

the IHIA will do what is best for them anyways, most likely...hence the Boston/Montreal picks.

cheers,

greg b.

[Chadd 916]

good points, however, every trip for retailers and exhibtors will be expensive.

An All-Star games does not usually put a strain on rooms as they cater to the host destination fans.

The All-Star game might be a bit late tho' for the purpose of buying...

the IHIA will do what is best for them anyways, most likely...hence the Boston/Montreal picks.

cheers,

greg b.

All-star game/weekend is for the corperate sponsors more than anything else, the NHL mentioned that when they said the 2006 game was cancelled in favor of the Olympics.

[Jason Harris 31]

Greg and I talked about this with Kerry Goulet of "IceHockey World" magazine. I think it's a great idea, with the exception of what to do during the Olympic years.

The premise is it could be combined with the Fan Zone -- maybe Fan Zone would be Saturday/Sunday, while the booking aspect of the show might happen Monday through Wednesday. It may add two more nights lodging in a city, but it would help create such a buzz for the industry: Come see next year's products!

I remember the All-Star game was around January 20th about ten years ago, so that's still early enough to hold it for companies to get their orders into the factories. Obviously, it would take coordination between the IHIA and the NHL, but it really could increase awareness for hockey.

And that's why I think it will never happen.... <_<

[Chadd 916]

The premise is it could be combined with the Fan Zone -- maybe Fan Zone would be Saturday/Sunday, while the booking aspect of the show might happen Monday through Wednesday. It may add two more nights lodging in a city, but it would help create such a buzz for the industry: Come see next year's products!

That's another reason many retailers won't want it to happen. The last thing most retailers want people to know is that certain models or lines will be discontinued before they have a chance to blow out old stock.

People here even ask if they should get stick X or wait until stick Y is available. For that information to become more widely available than it already is, does not benefit retailers, unless they happen to be the large online companies that get priority delivery or handle the blowouts.