It’s human nature to resist change — we’re far more comfortable WITH
the familiar. At the same time, the first thought after a change for the better is Why
didn’t we do this sooner? Which is exactly how I felt at this year’s Travel Goods Show.
We returned to the TGA office after last year’s successful Show and asked ourselves if we could make The 2007 Show even better. It took some head scratching and a lot of serious effort on the part of our hardworking Show staff, but the moment we cut the ribbon at this year’s Show I knew we’d pulled it off.
The Show simply felt more exciting to me. Maybe it was the brighter, bigger signage we launched this year, which featured sponsorship space on the aisle banners for the first time. Or maybe it was the debut of our first-ever Travel Goods Product Guide, which showcased some of the newest, most innovative items in travel goods. I know the Product Guide made an impression with media visitors, who used it to help plot their coverage strategies.
This year’s Show was also a better place for doing business. We blanketed the Show floor with free WiFi, which made keeping in touch with the rest of the world a lot simpler and less expensive. Not only was getting email as simple as opening
a laptop, Show-goers could easily check on inventory, expedite orders and ship items from warehouses back home through the magic of the Internet.
We also had the best-fed trade show attendees in town, with free coffee and water, free meal vouchers and free smoothies provided right on the Show floor. This saved money and time, since you could have a fast meal without leaving the hall.
These are all relatively little things, but collectively, they had a huge impact on the Show experience. The Show staff really outdid themselves to raise the bar from last year. The result was a brand new, re-energized Show. And that’s why, when we returned to the TGA office, we weren’t willing to settle for covering The Show in Travel Goods Showcase the same way we’ve done in the past.
The Travel Goods Show is a special event, and we’ve made this issue of Showcase equally special, devoting almost half of our pages to The Show. Rather than breaking our coverage into separate stories, as we have before, we’re combining it into a giant feature, mixing product photos and info with images and commentary from the Show floor itself. This is how you experienced The Show,
and how we wanted to present it. You’ll also find stories about the All-Industry Awards Breakfast, the TGA Awards and other events.
For those who attended The Show, I hope leafing through our coverage will remind you of walking the floor and making those little discoveries — new items and friends — that will inspire you throughout your 2007 selling season. We hope you’ll also experience the joy of discovery as you read about things you might have missed.
For those who didn’t make it to Las Vegas, we hope our new feature coverage will convey some of the excitement that makes The Show something I look forward to every year. Hopefully, it will inspire you to join us for The Travel Goods Show 2008 in San Diego next March. We’re already planning ways to make it even bigger and better. Just you watch!
Editor-in-chief
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