Congress 2006: A record turnout
Members of the horticulture industry were out in full force at Congress 2006, held January 10-12 at the Toronto Congress Centre. The final attendee head count came in at 14,542 which is a record for Congress, says Paul Day, trade show manager. The numbers represent an 11.66 per cent increase over last year.
“I think we really have to pay homage to the weather,” says Day. The above-average temperatures certainly helped the show, he says, but Day also credits things like e-mail promotion, a show blog and the Congress website for helping to increase traffic.
Exhibitors impressed
Exhibitors were also pleased with the quality and quantity of attendees at the show. “It was the busiest opening day for the show that I can remember,” says Keith Osbourne of Gro-Bark. “Everyone in our booth was busy talking to customers. We saw a lot of people come to the show from farther away than usual. I think the weather really helped with the numbers,” he says.
Ed Bosman of Bosman Home Front continues to be impressed with the trade show. “This is our fourth year at the show. We are building a family of dealerships and Congress is where we make our contacts,” he explains. “Last year we got six new dealers out of the show. We are a small company, so the show is expensive for us, but it’s worth it.”
Gary Pitcher of Montana Tractors, a first time exhibitor, was also very pleased with the show. “We’ve had a lot of retail customer interest and new dealer interest. We’re more than satisfied,” he says.
“Our company far exceeded our expectation during this show. We will definitely be attending next year,” says Jackie Vian of Elm Technologies.
New show features
The show floor was busy thanks to new features like the Internet Cafe (courtesy of General Motors) and the History on View display of antique lawn and garden equipment (courtesy of Country Heritage Park). St. Clair College joined the show as a feature garden builder this year — along with Fanshawe College and Humber College.
Congress also hosted Fencecraft (the show within a show) again this year. The show is presented by the Canadian Fence Industry Association. “More than 75 per cent of our exhibitors have already signed up for next year’s show,” says Evie Isenberg, Fencecraft show manager.
The New Products Showcase expanded by 600 square feet. Visitors to the area voted on the best new product of the show. Results will be announced in the next issue of Landscape Trades.
Popular conference program
The Congress Conference program was very popular this year. “Conference attendance was up 9.5 per cent,” says Pat Hillmer, Congress Conference coordinator. There were 42 sessions, several of which drew large crowds. “The David Domoney seminar was standing- oom only,” says Hillmer. Domoney, a British garden television personality, did a presentation on hot new trends from Europe. The session was sponsored by the British Consulate General. “Many of the business and legislation seminars were also very well attended,” adds Hillmer.
Annual favourites
It was another full house for Landscape Ontario’s annual Awards of Excellence ceremony, held on January 10 at the Doubletree International Plaza. Honouring the best in construction, maintenance and design, top honours went to Juergen Partridge Ltd., with the Dunington Grubb Award for the best overall construction project. The Grounds Management Award for the best overall maintenance project went to Cavan’s Town Gardener. Oriole Landscaping took home the Casey van Maris award for unique and innovative design. A complete list of award winners is available at www.loawards.com and will be featured in the March issue of Horticulture Review.
The annual Tailgate party, held on January 11 at the Doubletree International Plaza, celebrated its 10th anniversary this year. “The Tailgate was held in a new location this year,” says Day, “but it continues to be a favourite with attendees and exhbitors.”
