HPBExpo Locations, Revenues And Exhibits Frequently Asked

Volume 18, Number 5
A Monthly Publication Of The Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association
HPBExpo Locations, Revenues and Exhibits
Frequently Asked Questions About the Trade Show
By Kelly VanDermark
W
Who selects the HPBExpo city?
The oversight and management of the HPBExpo are the
responsibility of the HPBA Expo Committee, a 12-member committee from each segment of HPBA membership
(retailer, manufacturer, distributor, manufacturer representative and associate). The committee meetings are held in
prospective cities, giving the members an opportunity to
tour the convention centers, proposed outdoor burn areas,
hotels, city sites and meet with city representatives. The
committee sends its city recommendations to the HPBA
Board of Directors for final approval.
Are there any convention centers that allow wood-andpellet-burning indoors?
Currently there are no convention centers in the United
States or Canada that could handle all of Expo’s burning
requirements (wood, propane, natural gas, pellets, corn,
alcohol gel and charcoal) indoors. Unfortunately, at this
time, there are only a handful of centers that allow natural gas and alcohol gel burning products indoors. However, centers do upgrade and may be considered in the
future. For example, the Los Angeles Convention Center
actually conducted a research project to determine what
it would take to retrofit its center. The result was that
indoor burning of all fuels was infeasible due to costs and
limitations to the exhibitors.
Could HPBA build and own a facility in the central U.S.
and lease it out to other organizations?
This has been considered, but ruled out after determining
that the maintenance and overhead costs would outweigh
any benefit of being in one place. There is also no guarantee of any consistent usage by other trade shows to offset investment costs.
JOURNAL
What are the major requirements for a proposed city and
convention center facility?
First and foremost, a city’s convention center must meet
the size requirements for HPBExpo’s exhibits (indoors and
outdoors) and education and meeting space at a cost that
is in line with other cities. To accommodate indoor burning, natural gas must be available, along with proper ventilation and cooling
systems, and the outdoor area must be in
close proximity to
the center. The outdoor area must be
paved, level and
near a natural gas
source, and provide
enough space to handle the larger exhibits, since many
parking lots have extensive landscaping or median strips.
The show requires a significant move-in and move-out
period and the outdoor area requires a two-week span.
The city must also have a broad range of hotel chains
at a variety of price points. An added advantage for a city
is accessibility from North American cities, as well as
internationally. As the show evolves with new requirements, such as the burning of alcohol gel products, the
committee often rules out cities that once were acceptable
locations. A favorite, the Opryland Nashville, is now too
small for the trade show, Phoenix no longer has an outdoor exhibit area or indoor burning and Baltimore does
not have indoor burning. HPBA’s Expo staff stays in close
communication with all of the city representatives to be
aware of any changes that could potentially open up other
options for future sites.
The staff has researched over 90 cities in North America and monitors their upgrades. The major reasons a city
is ruled out as a viable location are indoor burning, outdoor burn location/availability/wood burning bans, space
restrictions, suitable housing, ease of access, available
dates and weather conditions during the trade show’s preferred March timeframe.
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HPBA JOURNAL - MAY 2012
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(“HPBExpo Locations…” continued from page 61)
Is there an East – West rotation?
The goal of the Expo Committee is to have an east/central/west
rotation; however, the availability of the limited locations
and unforeseen changes, such as the last minute move from
Nashville to Orlando, can make a rotation difficult. The
future sites are as follows:
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Orlando (East)
Salt Lake City (West)
Nashville (Central)
New Orleans (Central)
Atlanta (East)
Nashville (Central)
Salt Lake City (West)
Why is HPBExpo 2013 going to Orlando, another eastern
city?
In January, HPBA learned that the new Music City Convention Center in Nashville would not be completed in time for
HPBExpo 2013. Fortunately, the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando had availability and met all requirements. The Expo Committee recommended moving the Expo
to Orlando due to the city’s high rating from Expo surveys,
and the Board of Directors approved the recommendation.
JOURNAL
Why not hold the trade show every other year?
HPBA is reliant on the trade show’s profit, on average over
a million dollars, to fund its programs. To make up the financial shortfall on an “off” year, exhibitors would have to pay
more than double on Expo years. In addition, a large percentage of the show’s exhibitors are mid to small manufacturers that only exhibit at HPBExpo and need the show every
year to introduce their new products, meet with new and
existing customers, and even write orders. If HPBExpo went
to an every-other-year schedule, it would lose many of those
exhibitors to annual shows. The show also attracts between
70 – 80 new exhibiting companies each year.
Why are some of the major manufacturers not exhibiting
every year?
The current market conditions and downturn in new home
building have impacted a few of the larger exhibitors’ Expo
participation. However, the majority of our exhibitors are
mid to small manufacturers and a third of them (131 companies) have been participating consistently for the last six
years. These companies need the show every year to market their products. The 2012 post-Expo exhibitor survey indicates that 82 percent of the exhibitors felt the show met or
exceeded their expectations and 74 percent plan to be in
Orlando next year, with another 20 percent still undecided
(only six percent indicated they do not plan to exhibit).
membership. Each affiliate also receives 50 percent of the
registration fee from every non-member attendee to help
recruit for membership.
How are the HPBExpo profits spent?
The Expo revenues are 80 percent of HPBA’s annual revenue. These net revenues fund the government affairs programs and regulatory challenges; the barbecue public relations
and industry promotions programs; the hearth and barbecue
statistical surveys; and help staff the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Education Foundation.
What are the reasons for the tiered booth fee schedule?
The tiered booth schedule rewards exhibiting HPBA member
companies that consistently participate in the Expo. Since the
show is a major member benefit, the pricing is structured to
reward consistent supporters of the association and Expo. The
priority point structure is based similarly. Points are accumulated for exhibitors based on a ranking system for their space
selection. Exhibitors move up the list as they accumulate
points based on years of membership, years of exhibiting,
consistent show participation and overall space taken.
Are there discounts provided to international exhibitors?
The only discount available to exhibitors is the large booth
fee discount. This is a discount of 40 cents off the square
footage costs for exhibitors taking more than 2,000 square
feet of space. The discount applies only to the additional
space over the 2,000 square feet. There are no other discounts in place. We have seen an influx of international
exhibitors to the Expo, which is a pattern many trade shows
are experiencing. To accommodate these companies, we have
provided an area on the floor allowing them all to exhibit
together. This is not a forced location, but offered more out
of convenience.
Editor’s Note: Kelly VanDermark is the director of
Meetings & Exhibitions for HPBA.
The HPBA Journal is intended to provide in-depth information to
the hearth and outdoor products industry. Statements of fact and
opinion are the responsibility of the authors alone and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of the officers, board, staff or members of the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association.
Copyright ©2012 by the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association.
All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association is
prohibited. Direct requests for permission to use material published in the HPBA Journal to the Director of Communications,
How is the HPBExpo revenue shared with the affiliates?
The 13 HPBA affiliates share 15 percent of the net Expo
revenue, based on the percentage of the previous year’s
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MAY 2012 - HPBA JOURNAL
HPBA, 1901 N. Moore St., Suite 600, Arlington, VA 22209, (703)5220086 or email: hpbamail@hpba.org.