More exhibitors at NHS

The National Hardware Show, the trade fair in the USA, took place for the 70th time this year. Organiser Reed Exhibitions announced the number of exhibitors in Las Vegas to be more than 2 700; last year there was talk of more than 2 500 exhibitors. The exhibition area was around 60 000 m² and visitors came from more than 100 countries. Due to the fact that the event organiser hasn't released any information about the numer of visitors, it's difficult to assess the show's impact on the US-American and worldwide industry.
The organisers have worked on developing the support program in order to increase the trade fair's appeal. For example, for the first time this year there was an Outdoor Supply Auction.
There were also a whole range of presentations and seminars. One educational session consisted of a panel that discussed the next generation of independent owners. Will Aubuchon, vice president of sales at Aubuchon Hardware in Westminster, Massachusetts, shared his perspective on the challenges the industry is facing, especially when it comes to changes in customer service expectations for employees.
"Customer service is evolving but you have to start with people first and foremost, so recruiting and training really good people is still highly relevant today," Aubuchon said.

In other sessions, speakers described the challenges of serving different generations of customers - young, middle and aged.
Jim Robisch, senior partner with the Farnsworth Group, presented data that gave insights into how different generations shop. "All of these generations are differnet in one respect but then very similar in other areas," Robisch said.
"For example, all generations place the same importance on stores having good sale prices and being organized," Robisch says. "Yet they rate the importance of employees providing information for projects very differently, with baby boomers valuing that aspect the most."
In the last few years, the National Hardware Show has been particulartly responsive to overall consumer trends, bringing in more exhibitors from categories with growth potential for retailers, such as farm and ranch, emergency preparedness and disaster recovery.