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Your Letters An industry beset by Tradition?
01 May 2005
But Tradition has it that we in the UK need 2 main boat shows to display our products and services. We spend 21 days (Over 200 hours) paying premium rates for exhibition space and the staffing costs involved to cover wages, travel, accommodation and meals, all adding up to make it a very costly marketing exercise. Plus add on the preparation and breakdown costs, which can add a further 4 -16 days, and for some even more. With a gap of only 15 - 16 weeks between the 2 shows, of which nearly 2 weeks for some are the Christmas shut down, Tradition does not come easy or cheap!
The London Boat Show comes straight after what is for many people the most expensive time of the year and we expect the boating public to turn out in their thousands to support our first major show of the year! Because Tradition has it the Boat Show is early January.
Now tradition has it that a large majority of people have longer holidays around this time of the year and these people do not want to take an extra day's holiday to visit the Boat Show after being off for 10 - 14 days!
The £ in their pocket is precious and it may be the Boat Show does not have the appeal that it had in the past.
Could it be timing?
When you compare our 2 main shows both have good points and some not so good points. Is it time to break with tradition and go for one major boating event which covers every form of on the water activity? It could be ExCeL at a different time of year and use the huge amount of open water which is going begging or somewhere else.
One Yearly event which could be the biggest boating event in the World.
I for one would rather spend 10 busy days at a show rather than have the prolonged periods of very slow times with all too few customers on my stand.
Surely a show where exhibitors staff numbers are getting close to the visitor numbers during opening times is wrong and not cost effective for anyone!
The motor show is once every 2 years and one hell of a lot of people have motors! And guess what! The Motor Show is moving to ExCeL. I wonder if they will make use of the water around EXCEL?
A couple of thoughts. In addition to the 2 major shows, we see a growing number of local boating events and Boat Jumbles. These for many are cost effective way of getting product to the boating public.
Is there a clue here?
Next, the second biggest sport in the UK is Angling! They use a lot of boats. But we did not appear to have cast our net to catch the anglers at EXCEL.
Around 50 years ago GRP arrived. At the time, everyone said it wouldn't catch on as boats are built in wood. Tradition!
May be it is time for everyone within this wonderful Industry to take time and look at where we are all heading and what the future holds for us.
We are all in this industry to make ££ and we look for ways to improve what we do. We need the BMF - NBS and it needs us. We all have the same objectives (Hopefully).
To make the British Marine Industry one which is admired through out the World.
Yours sincerely, Peter Edwards A.S.A.P. Supplies Ltd
