“This year our Supplier Showcase is a two-day exhibit, and we have a lot more exhibitors than before,” shared Melissa Schilling, director of exhibitions and conferences at NSSF. “We are expecting more than 500 exhibits.” This means a change to the entire New Products Center. “We’re expanding the part of the New Products Center where the Supplier Showcase is located across the hall leading to the corridor back to A Hall,” Dolnack said. “There was a lot of foot traffic in the area last year, and quite a few product inquiries from the scanners.” The Caliber Club also is continuing in 2019. Introduced in 2018, the Caliber Club is the VIP experience of the SHOT Show. Paid membership in the Caliber Club provides Caliber Club Lounge Access for the member and two guests, where amenities such as complimentary snacks and beverages, private meeting rooms, chair massages, shoe shines, pack-andship services and other business center resources are available. A Caliber Club badge identifies members to vendors, suppliers and onsite personnel for additional VIP services and access. Concierge services include making dinner reservations and ordering complimentary show tickets, and membership means discounts at the Sands Expo and Venetian/Palazzo Hotel. “The Caliber Club provides an upgrade to registration,” Schilling lends. “We are selling a limited number of passes for $275.” The NEXT Pavilion upstairs will remain the same for 2019. Now in its fourth year, the NEXT kiosks continue to be a big hit; there was considerable traffic in this area of the show last year. Companies who do well there are ready for the main show floor as soon as there’s room for them. NEW VENUES SET FOR 2020 In keeping with the expanding needs of the show, Dolnack said both exhibitors and attendees will see some major changes coming in 2020, beginning with the Supplier Showcase. “In 2020 we’re going to expand over to the MGM,” he shared. “The Supplier Showcase will be moving over there in its entirety. We still have more than 1,000 exhibitors on the waitlist; unfortunately, we are not able to accommodate them in the space we have. This is frustrating for us as much as it is for the exhibitors because they want access to the market and to buyers.” NSSF has secured the MGM conference space starting in 2020 and has a three-year contract with the hotel. “In addition to moving the Supplier Showcase there, we’re also going to begin promoting to other industries — like automotive and aerospace,” Dolnack added. “There are a lot of common manufacturing processes for parts with companies that machine parts and do metal injection molding and produce centered parts.” Following the 2020 expansion to the MGM, there will be another step in 2021. “In 2021 we will expand to the Caesar’s Forum which is being built right next door to the Sands,” Dolnack outlined. “Those two venues will increase our overall net exhibit space by 50 percent.” And look for even bigger changes in the future. IT’S A NETWORKING SHOW, AN EDUCATIONAL SHOW AND A MEDIA SHOW THAT SPREADS THE WORD ACROSS THE INDUSTRY. “We’re in talks with a couple of other companies who are in the process of building or developing more exhibit space,” Dolnack stated. “When you look at the Consumer Electronics Show, it’s a city-wide show. They have multiple venues all over the city and convention centers and hotels and ballrooms. If we have a demand and can provide a forum for manufacturers to present their products, and it adds value for the buyers, then I think it’s incumbent on us as the trade association to provide those opportunities to help expand and grow the market.” INTERNATIONAL SALES For the past four years, exhibitors who attended the show were able to participate in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Buyer Program. This program provides the SHOT Show with support from the U.S. Department of Commerce to manage and facilitate matching international buyers with exhibiting U.S. companies, and work with U.S. exhibitors to educate them on existing government export programs. The program offers Department of Commerce support on a variety of issues to help out show exhibitors, including providing export counsel, assistance with intellectual property infringement (IPR), education on Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP!) program, IPR protection measures during the show and means to protect intellectual property in overseas markets. Although there are no major changes to this program, it continues to grow and expand. “The Department of Commerce is bringing more and more delegations to the SHOT Show,” Dolnack added. “We’ve had great growth and success in the program over the last several years.” A NEW ANSWER TO “WHERE’S MY BADGE?” One big change for 2019 is NSSF will no longer be mailing badges to attendees; now there will only be onsite pickup. “We’re doing this for a couple of reasons,” Dolnack informed. “One is so www.shootingindustry.com DECEMBER 2018 49
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