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Show a Big Success Despite Somewhat Thinner Crowds
The 2008 International Builders’ Show (IBS), considered the largest industry event of its kind, attracted more than 92,000 attendees and 1,900 exhibitors spread across more than one million net square feet of exhibit space.
Closing out its four-year run at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, the show hosted builders from across the country against a backdrop of a dramatic slowdown in new-home sales.
“Builders came to this year’s show with a renewed sense of purpose and got straight to work learning about the latest products and trends and how to differentiate themselves from the competition,” said NAHB President Sandy Dunn, who was installed on Feb. 15. “They’re doing what they need to do to get back on track in a slower market.”
While attendance was down 11% from last year, show exhibitors were pleased with this year’s sales leads and customers, noting that there were fewer “tire kickers” and more builders looking for detailed information about the products displayed.
“The traffic is down, but the quality is good,” said Jeffrey Feld of Jeld-Wen, a window and door manufacturer. “When you have people waiting three or four deep, you don’t have time to really speak with them. That’s not true this year.”
“I had already gotten more leads by yesterday than I usually get for the whole show,” said Laura Barrington, a representative from Lennox heating and air conditioning systems. “These are serious builders, truly interested in learning about our product.”
Interest was especially strong in the green product category — from more energy efficient tool batteries at DeWalt to tankless water heaters on display at the Propane Education and Research Council (PERC). The key, these exhibitors said, was better product marketing.
“We had phenomenal attendance,” said DeWalt’s Adam Lawless. The booth featured stations where attendees could try out the company’s tools and then receive tickets for free product drawings. “We did it right as a company,” by including a large marketing budget and providing plenty of free tools and accessories, he said.
The council, meanwhile, featured a propane-fueled truck, given to one lucky show-goer. The promotion helped draw attention to propane’s other uses besides as a source of fuel in the backyard grill, said Tracy Burleson, director of residential trade outreach and partnerships for PERC.
Attendees noted the change in the crowds, too. “This is my second show, and it’s much different from last year, but in a good way,” said Teresa Radzuercz of Corporate Construction in Inverness, Fla. “There’s more room to breathe. It’s easier to talk to people.”
The IBS celebrated Green Day on Thursday, Feb. 14, as the association launched the NAHB National Green Building Program and introduced the Certified Green Professional educational designation. Attendees packed the rooms for a full schedule of green building-related seminars, and an introduction to the highly anticipated NAHB National Green Building Program boasted standing-room-only crowds. “Green building is the next big thing, and we are certainly ready for it,” Dunn noted.
After spending four years in Orlando, the International Builders’ Show moves next year to Las Vegas, Jan. 20-23. “As the housing industry regains its strength in 2008, I predict a great show next year, too,” Dunn said.
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