Would you be upset if your wholesale suppliers went direct to public?
Meaning cutting you out of the supply chain by offering to sell at 'retail prices' to your customers - prices which, inevitably, will beat yours.
Now, how about if they did this on the last two days of an industry trade show?
Unthinkable, you say? Unheard of? Not so fast...
Check out Suzi Finer's post on her blog today: http://www.iamadiva.com/news/ArticleDetails.aspx?CategoryID=79&ArticleID=293
I was shocked to read this, but I can tell you why it's happening... trade show companies are doing everything and anything they can to survive. Shows are a dying breed, because the internet has changed everything about supply & demand with direct links to manufacturers. It's been affecting my dad's wholesale gift business for years, along with some of my clients and their industries. Having been involved in the Seattle and San Francisco Gift Shows for over six years, I have seen numerous changes - not all of them positive.
Trade shows have actually become a liability to many small businesses. Retailers are cutting costs, ordering online rather than traveling to order at booths & showrooms...saves time, money, expenses. This impacts the shows - when exhibitors see lowered attendance, and less orders coming from this venue, they opt out and don't rent space. Even very large and well-known companies do this - Katherine's Collection and K & K Interiors spring to mind in regard to the Seattle Gift Show. Lowered attendance by buyers and exhibitors affects the bottom line of the show producers...and if you're a trade show production company, you try to re-capture those dollars any way you can.
Addressing market changes and making adjustments is understandable. Going after the end consumer and bypassing your own customers - the small independent retailers that have supported your shows and made your industry a multi-billion-dollar enterprise - is a really cheap shot. Shame on you, CHA.
What are your thoughts on what CHA is doing?
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