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| Over 7,700 Attendees 1,017 Exhibit Spaces Over 25,000 seats filled for nearly 100 Educational Sessions Demonstrations, Sessions In Spanish Networking, Learning and Camaraderie All This And More At ................. The sixth annual Minnesota Green Expo held January 9, 10 and 11, 2008 at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Judging by feedback from attendees and exhibitors, the 2008 Minnesota Green Expo exceeded expectations and was a huge success. While many local and regional conferences around the country continue to experience declining attendance and exhibitor participation, the 2008 Minnesota Green Expo came very close to matching the record attendance set last year. This year there were more exhibit spaces, both on the Trade Show floor and in the non-profit areas for attendees to explore product, service and educational offerings. Consequetnly, the Minnesota Green Expo continues to "buck the trend" as green industry professionals in the upper mid-West realize and appreciate the value and quality of this event. Many of the educational sessions this year were held in the auditoriums located immediately adjacent to the registration area. This significantly reduced the amount of time and distance needed to go between various sessions. Speakers with expertise in a broad range of topics were featured during the three days of the Expo coming from various Universities, companies and other governmental agencies from around the country. The Trade Show filled the two largest domes in the Minneapolis Convention Center. There were more than 420 companies occupying the equivalent of 1,017 booth spaces. This represents an increase in both the number of firms exhibiting and the number of total spaces being utilized. In addition to these numbers, there is also a waiting list of vendors who either want to expand existing displays or want to be added to the list. The University of Minnesota continued with their extensive display in a location that affords good visability and improved traffic flow and additionally had a great display on the Trade Show floor. All non-profit displays were located near the main University area most reporting satisfaction with their location. Several of our Allied Associations had exhibit spaces immediately in front of the registration area which afforded excellent visability and convenience for those that participated. Educational and demonstration areas on the Trade Show floor also provided interest to those touring the area. Most of these proved to be a very popular draw onto the Trade Show. The Welcome Reception was again held on Trade Show floor on Wednesday and was very well received. The always popular Casino Night was held again on Thursday and had great participation. A number of exhibiting companies were generous in donating prizes for attendees who participated and served as volunteer dealers for the event. We thank all of those companies for their generosity and they will be recognised again in our newletter. Again this year, a complimentary reception for Alumni and Friends of the University was held in the University's main exhibit area. Dr. Thomas Michaels, Department Head of Horticultural Science headlined the reception in co-operation with College and Alumni Association personnel. Dr. Donald White was featured at this year's reception. Several individuals honored Don with remembrances of his efforts and dedication throughout his 40+ years service to the University as well as the turf and grounds industry. There are a number of interesting statistics that are apparent from the post-show surveys. First and foremost is that the responses gathered via feedback forms for both the educational sessions and the trade show were overwhelmingly positive. Responses indicated that educational offerings were highly ranked for both seminar content and speaker presentation. The exhibitor responses at the conclusion of the Expo were the best ever recorded, particularly with move-in, move-out and the overall traffic throughout the exhibit hall. It is particularly exciting that, even with the expansion of available exhibit spaces, the waiting list for new exhibitors as well as repeat exhibitors who want to expand continues to grow. Obviously, if the Expo is to continue to be the successful event that it has been, these are the two critical pieces of puzzle. Attendance is dependant on the quality and scope of the exhibits on the trade show floor and the quality and variety of educational opportunities offered throughout the course of the Expo. The greater the attendance the more attractive exhibitng at Expo is for our vendors. Receiving such positive reports from participants on both of these certainly bodes well for the future success of the Expo. The Keynote speaker, David Horsage, kicked off the Expo addressing "Gaining the Trust EDGE". David relayed a number of inspirational offerings as well as some amazing slight-of-hand "tricks". Following the Keynote there were twelve educational sessions offered on a wide variety of topics with many choices available from that point on for the balance of the three days. One of the few negative comments that was received about the educational sessions throughout the three days was that "there were so many good things offered I couldn't get to everything I wanted to attend". That is quite a testimonial to the quality of the program that was offered and is an awfully good problem to have! There are several items that are interesting when reviewing the demographic studies of the six Expos that have been now held. Advanced registrations have increased each year. The attendees who indicate that they are decision makers have been a majority of the total attendance each year and this year reached an all-time high. The total number of attendees who indicated an affiliation with the MTGF or as exhibitors has increased every year. The biggest change in attendance this past year was an increase in attendees from outside the State of Minnesota. Obviously word is getting out that this is quite an event and we are drawing from an increasingly larger area. Plans are already well underway for the 2009 Expo. The Joint Programming Board and the Trade Show Committee are meeting soon and and will formulate plans that should prove positive for an even better Expo in '09. Issues such as handouts, overlap of major speakers, moderator and lighting issues are all being addressed and will be improved upon in coming years. A contract is in place with both the host hotel, the Minneapolis Hyatt Regency, and the Minneapolis Convention Center through 2014. The gauranteed room rates are excellent and the dates for the Expo have a start of the main Expo no earlier than January 5, with most years having a starting date closer to January 7 or 8. As mentioned above, plans are already well underway for the 2009 Minnesota Green Expo. The dates will be Wednesday through Friday, January 7-9, 2009 with educational sessions and the Trade Show offered on all three days. There will be a number of pre-Expo workshops offered on Tuesday, January 6, 2009. Pesticide Recertification day will again be on Friday. Aquatics recertification will be offered again on Thursday in '09 so that those individuals will not have to stay later than normal on Friday. Again, complete details will be available on the official Expo web site shown at the top of this page. The Minnesota Green Expo is one of the best and largest regional events of its kind. It would not be possible without the support of the many companies that exhibit and provide sponsorships at this annual event. Please remember this when it comes time to make your buying decisions for the coming year. Supporting those who support the Expo is the best way to ensure that this event will continue to grow both in size and quality in the coming years. Have a great 2008 and watch for more information on the 2009 Minnesota Green Expo as plans progress. |