NAMTA Show Numbers Strong Despite Weak Economy

The numbers are in and all signs are positive for the art materials industry! Going into the 2009 International Convention and Trade Show, NAMTA (The International Art Materials Trade Association) had 177 buying companies pre-registered versus 170 in 2008.

Combined pre-registration and onsite registration showed 227 buying companies attending, compared to 221 in 2008. Post show numbers show that actual on-site attendance for buying companies was 202, down less than 10% from 2008. The number of exhibiting companies this year was 155, compared to 170 in 2008, also less than a 10% decline.

“We expected a slight decline in our attendance this year due to the recession,” said Sid Smith, NAMTA’s Executive Director, “Data from Tradeshow Week showed an expected 15-20% decline in overall trade show attendance in 2009. Less than half of that expected decline for NAMTA means that the art materials industry is still thriving. NAMTA members are just finding ways of being more creative during harsh economic times.”

Feedback from NAMTA’s Exhibitor Survey is also showing a positive experience in Louisville. According to Claudio Andreis of Mercur, “NAMTA 2009 was a very good show. We did several trade shows this year and this one was the best in terms of achieving our goals. I believe NAMTA passed with an “A” the hard economics test presented.”

The 2009 NAMTA show was held May 7-9, 2009 in Louisville, KY and is now planning their 60th Anniversary show in Indianapolis, IN, April 15-17, 2010.

NAMTA Show Video by Jim Hair

NAMTA 2009 Wrap Up

I have to be honest. Although the NAMTA staff was optimistic going into the show this year and our pre-registration numbers were up from last year, we weren’t sure what kind of attitude to expect from the rest of the industry. In times of economic recession, it’s easy to give up or project a gloom and doom attitude. But, to our delight, the opposite was true of our industry members.

Art will never go away! In turn, art materials will never go away. The human race has continually turned to art to help cope with hard times. Art has survived through recession, oppression, depression, terrorism, tragedy, natural disasters and war. During his keynote presentation at the NAMTA show, artist Wyland exclaimed, “Despite the challenges, this is the greatest time in history to be an artist!” Our industry will change, but will not disappear. We need to continue to reinvent our products, processes, strategies and focus.

As NAMTA’s Executive Director, Sid Smith, said in his trend report at the show, “When the recession comes to an end, the impact that it had will not.” This is not a negative thing; in fact, Sid also emphasized that, “This industry may be headed into the next Golden Age.”

In addition to the optimism for the future of our industry, I noticed another attitude trend. It started with our Board of Directors meeting the day before the opening of the NAMTA show. One of the members of the Board reminded us that while we may be manufacturing drills, the customer is actually buying the holes. Aha! You could see the light bulb come on in the room. Another Board member told a story of one of her employees who was proud after making a big sale. “He came in for a brush and left with a lifestyle!” she exclaimed.

This got me thinking. When I go to the movies, am I really just purchasing a movie ticket? No! I am buying an escape. This is a whole new way to look at our industry, especially in a recession where customers are left with less and less disposable income. Are we selling brushes, canvas and paint? Or, are we selling an opportunity, an experience, an emotion, an outlet, an inspiration? Changing your thinking just a little may lead to new sales tactics, new customers and new products.

In conclusion, I was absolutely thrilled with the optimism and excitement on the show floor. The art materials industry is alive and thriving! One last thing – where is my cardboard cutout and can she stand in for me during next year’s early morning meetings?

Rachel Gray
Director of Membership and Communications
NAMTA

Live from the NAMTA Show! - Awards Day

Well, we all made it through the first day of the show and were rewarded with an amazing President's Reception last night at the Kentucky Derby Museum. Over 500 attended and we got rave reviews from all!

I didn't realize how many members were "tweeting" from the NAMTA show. Follow NAMTA and other members at www.twitter.com/namta

Tweets heard from the NAMTA show:

• "Felt like a kid in a candy shop. I wanted to break out & sample everything"


• "Favorite product for Moms: "Bubber," frm DELTA makers of Moon Sand, is light modeling clay & feels like silk"
  
• "Overall great 1st day @namta. Met with a lot of retailers & suppliers."


• "Wyland is at NAMTA trade conference trying to convince artists and the art materials industry to go green"
  
• "Busy first day at Namta"
  
• "Speaker, Sid Smith, NAMTA Dir. "Telling Fad from Trend" Interesting. Very interesting
  
• "Watch American Artist publisher on Good Morning Kentuckiana (Ch11) 7:15am tomorrow showing new products

Congratulations to the following exhibitors who were presented with awards at this morning's annual meeting:

• Best Small Booth: Alpha Art Materials, Inc.


• Best Medium Booth: Masterpiece Artist Canvas, Inc.


• Best Large Booth: Golden Artist Colors, Inc.


• Best New Exhibitor: Grex Airbrush
  
• Judges Special Recognition: Pebeo, Inc.
  
• Best Point of Purchase: Tri ArtBest
  
• Best Packaging: Hot Cakes – Enkaustikos Way Art Supply
  
• Best New Product – Hot Cakes – Enkaustikos Way Art Supply
  
• Best New Kid’s Product: Arttero Story Book Kits
  

More to come later! Including trends, news and quotes heard at the NAMTA show!

Rachel Gray
Director of Membership and Communications
NAMTA

Live from the NAMTA Show! - Opening Day

Last night we had record-breaking attendance at the Nocturnal Animals party. 225 people! We also raised $1,300 with a silent auction at the event. That's a total of $3,325 for the NAMTA Foundation. Check them out at http://www.namtafoundation.org/

Early this morning we shook up the show schedule with a variety of interesting speakers:

• Sunil Iyengar with the National Endowment for the Arts presented statistics on Artists in the Workforce. I will be sure to post some specifics on our website after the show.


• World reknowned artist Wyland spoke on Saving our World Through Art. He is not only an environmental advocate, but a huge advocate of keeping art in schools!


• NAMTA's Executive Director, Sid Smith provided some insite on trends that will impact the industry in the 21st century. What I found the most interesting - Movie Director Ridley Scott said,
  
  

  "While the 20th century is known as the century of the written word, the 21st century will be known as the century of the image."

  If he is right - what terrific news for the future of our industry!

Last, but not least, we finally opened the trade show floor to the traditional bugle call of the Kentucky Derby. I will post more later with insite from attendees and exhibitors as to the feel of the show. So far, so good!

Rachel Gray
Director of Membership and Communications
NAMTA

Live from the NAMTA Show - Seminar Day

It's Wednesday and excitement is building as exhibitors continue preparing their booths and attendees arrive in Louisville to attend NAMTA's Educational Seminars this afternoon.

Tonight we are looking forward to the International Members Reception and the Foundation's fundraiser party, N.A.M.T.A. (Nocturnal Animals Meet Together Annually).

Last night I went out and walked around 4th St., which is an entire block of bars and restaurants. I can't say enough how perfect Louisville is for the NAMTA show! The 4th St. Live block along with many other bars and restaurants are within walking distance of the host hotel and the convention center. No need for shuttles to the convention center! Everything is also connected by skywalk!

In cities such as Louisville, members aren't spread out all over town. It seems like we have taken over the area! As I walked down 4th St. last night, I saw members eating dinner on the sidewalk cafe's, members spilling out into the streets, members barhopping, and most important, members getting the chance to run into each other and say hi before the trade show even begins.

I know I was thrilled to catch up with some industry friends last night!

Rachel Gray
Director of Membership and Communications
NAMTA

Live from NAMTA - What Can Exhibitors Expect?

It's Tuesday morning and exhibitors are arriving in Louisville to start setting up their booths. With the US in a recession, I have had a lot of questions concerning the NAMTA show and if our numbers are down this year.

One of the things I love about working at NAMTA is that we are always completely honest with our members. While other associations may try to fudge their attendance numbers or litter the floor with unqualified buyers, we want to make sure that our exhibitors are happy with the QUALITY of customers they see at our show.

Two trends I've noticed with attendees this year:

1. More buying companies bringing less people - The numbers don't lie. The number of actual people that have pre-registered as attendees for the show is 451 compared to 593 last year. But, the number of buying companies (meaning qualified retail stores) is 177 this year compared to 170 last year. Retailers are still coming to the show - just bringing less employees with them.

2. Last Minute Decisions - Attendees waited longer this year to make a decision about coming to the show. The current numbers we have are just the pre-registration numbers. Many attendees will wait to register at the show. In fact, I checked my email last night and I was still receiving inquiries about attending the show. One was from a major chain retailer that didn't pre-register, but wanted to make sure they could register onsite. I wouldn't be surprised to see our attendance numbers rise significantly in the next few days as more retailers arrive in Louisville and register onsite.

The bottom line is - Yes, of course the recession has changed things here at the NAMTA show. But, it has not held anyone back. Keep in mind that it is the QUALITY of buyers and the QUANTITY of orders that count - not just filling the show floor with bodies!

Rachel Gray
Director of Membership and Communications