Hardware show debuts with strong numbers

Tuesday, May 11, 2004 | 10:59 a.m.

The National Hardware Show -- the nation's largest trade show for home improvement products -- kicked off its first convention in Las Vegas Monday to a surge of exhibitors and retail buyers.

The event, which runs through Wednesday at the Venetian's Sands Expo Center, will be watched by more than just industry insiders. It was also a trial of sorts for the show's exhibitor, Reed Exhibitions, as well as its new host city.

After a decline in exhibitors and complaints about high exhibition fees at the show's longtime home in Chicago, Reed Expositions severed ties with show partner the American Hardware Manufacturers Association and began a rival show in Las Vegas. The association sued Reed Expositions in federal court and went ahead with the AHMA Hardware Show last month in Chicago.

The Las Vegas show has attracted about 2,300 exhibitors, or more than three times the draw of the Chicago show, organizers say. Of the total in Las Vegas, about 610 exhibitors had never previously shown at the Chicago show or had returned after a more than two-year absence, Reed Exhibitions' Industry Vice President Robert Cappiello said. Only about 200 exhibitors registered for both Las Vegas and Chicago shows, he said.

"Those are important numbers for us," Cappiello said. "Some (vendors) signed on kicking and screaming," particularly because many of the traditional exhibitors are from the Midwest and are loyal to Chicago, he said. But many others welcomed the move to Las Vegas, which has so far lured top retail buyers from chains such as Wal-Mart, Bed Bath & Beyond and Lowe's, he added.

Some exhibitors said they are wistful of more peaceful times, when the show in years past would draw up to 4,000 exhibitors and some 80,000 to 90,000 people to Chicago's cavernous McCormack Place convention center. But Cappiello said the Las Vegas show is "more crowded than we've seen the show in four to five years."

Vendors say the infighting has been a setback for the industry. Still, the presence of two competing shows has lowered exhibition costs, benefiting smaller companies that may not have previously been able to afford the Chicago show, they said.

"We think it's foolish that the industry has split," said Scott Bannell, director of marketing services for tool and hardware giant The Stanley Works of New Britain, Conn., and one of the largest companies exhibiting at the Las Vegas show. "The auto industry doesn't have two competing shows."

However, Bannell that after 28 years in the hardware industry "I'm seeing a lot of names I don't recognize" on the tradeshow floor.

Stanley decided to exhibit in Las Vegas as well as Chicago this year but hasn't made a commitment for future years, Bannell said. The company, like others, wants to see how the show plays out first. Of the more than 100 shows the company will attend in a year, each "has got to be cost-effective for us," he said.

"Both shows have been very good" and have attracted top buyers, though May isn't the best timing for smaller, independent retailers that are entering a high season for home improvements and can't afford to be away from their stores at a trade show, he said.

Representatives from major manufacturers including Black and Decker and Skill-Bosch Power Tool Co. are attending the Las Vegas show to gauge interest but held back from buying exhibition space, conference organizers say.

Cosco Home & Office Products, a Colombus, Ind., company that makes ladders, step stools and office furniture, is using the Las Vegas show to unveil about 20 products, including vintage metal step stools for the home and compact, fold-up ladders that can be carried like a suitcase.

The Chicago show last month used to take up three large buildings but was down to one third of one building, said Bud Burkett, Cosco's director of advertising and marketing communications.

"It was sad to see it but it was the right thing to come here" to Las Vegas, he said. "The crowds were here. You've got to go where the buyers are."

Las Vegas has attracted a more diverse audience of attendees including East Coast companies and international exhibitors, he said. Many are also unveiling new products at the show, which lures retail buyers, he said.

Las Vegas has the glamour and attractions that Chicago doesn't have, particularly nightlife, he said.

"The old story about Vegas, that a lot of buyers don't show up the next day because they've been out partying the night before, isn't true anymore. The show starts ... and people are here to do business."

Another company debuting a new product at the show is MicroBlend Technologies, a four-year-old company from Chandler, Ariz., that hadn't previously exhibited at the Chicago show.

"This represents the best opportunity of the year" for the paint industry, said the company's Vice President of Sales and Marketing David Philbrook, referring to major buyers in attendance as well as the presence of big paint brands such as Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore. "It's clear the direction of the paint market was in Las Vegas. The response has been tremendous" to the product, he said.

The company has invented a process by which liquid components are mixed at the point of sale to make a range of interior and exterior paints of all colors, he said. Now, customers generally buy a pre-mixed base paint and add the color at the store, he said.

Creating made to order paint is cheaper and gives customers more choice, he said.

Vendors said the continuing trend toward do-it-yourself projects spawned by television shows and improved products has helped the industry.

Stanley, which recently bought out tool company CST/Berger, was showcasing the acquired company's laser levels and other measuring tools at the show.

"We're happy that people are working more on their homes," Bannell said.