Integrated Supply Network (ISN) held their annual tradeshow for tool and equipment distributors on June 29 and 30 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando, FL.
The final numbers had not been tallied yet, but late in the second day, Scott Pilkenton, VP of Marketing for ISN, was confident that total revenue would exceed $10 million, up from $8.6 million last year. He expected total cash give-away (awarded to distributors for orders over a certain amount) to approach $1.2 million. But dollars and deals were not the only reason to attend this show.
Training forums were presented on both days by eleven different companies to help distributors understand new tools and technologies, familiarize them with specific products and to present general sales tips.
On the show floor were literally dozens of new tools and 16 new vendors, including two finance companies, a truck body company, a leasing company, and Monster Tools and Equipment.
Pilkenton noted this is ISN’s first full year with Monster, and that “we’re developing a unique packaging concept that’s only for mobile dealers.” Two of the returning vendors, Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. and Sunex Tools, built large, custom booths specifically for this show. Milwaukee’s booth included a bar/lounge that offered comfortable seating, live sports on TV, video games and a jukebox with well-chosen music.
Final attendance figures were not available at press time, but registration was up over last year. Pilkenton pointed out the show’s networking opportunities (a hallmark of the ISN show) and also mentioned seeing distributors from different flags talking with each other.
Speaking about distributors who don’t attend the show, Pilkenton said: "We think it puts our customers at a significant disadvantage when they don’t attend our event. One reason of course is the missed opportunity to capture better than normal pricing and deals on the products they sell day in and day out. This is a financial disadvantage. Another critical reason to attend our event is to learn about new products sooner than those dealers that don’t attend the show. This is a strategic disadvantage for those customers who don’t attend the event. The final reason is missing the chance to speak to and learn from the biggest and best tool distributors in the industry. That is perhaps the biggest missed opportunity from not attending our event."
Next year’s ISN Show will be held at Gaylord Palms again on June 28-29, 2013.
