Attendees to the three-day STAFDA Convention & Trade Show in Atlanta will find hundreds of exhibitors and valuable business information starting on Sunday, Nov. 8, with an Economic Update from Alan Beaulieu of the Institute for Trend Research.
Beaulieu will present the economic outlook for the specialty fastener and tool industry and the global economy in general.
Sunday afternoon will bring four concurrent workshops. Greg Gorman will discuss the research he conducted in writing STAFDA's Visual Merchandising book. Prior to the event, he visited a number of STAFDA distributors across the country and critiqued their showrooms. All successful businesses have structured plans for marketing their products, and Gorman will review many of them during this working session.
Robert Stevenson will discuss "How to Soar Like an Eagle in a World Full of Turkeys." He'll site several examples of people being turkeys -- those arrogant, over-bearing, demanding and obnoxious customers, bosses, associates and relatives. Then he'll provide practical ways on how to deal with them. In this struggling economy, it takes strong tactics to survive -- let alone grow your business.
Steve Strauss' presentation, "Small to Big," will outline growth strategies, goal setting and achieving, creating a great team, and more. He'll explore creating multiple profit centers by adding products or services, looking at new locations, and strategies to find and tap into new markets.
Dan McQuiston will tackle "Creating a Winning Marketing Plan" during his presentation. He'll outline his 10-Step Marketing Plan that all firms, regardless of size, can implement to increase their success.
Three of the workshops are 90-minute programs that repeat following a 30-minute break. Dan McQuiston's program will run for three hours.
Sunday afternoon will also offer the spouse/companion tour "Tips on Prepping for a Holiday Season with a Southern Twist," presented by chef Kevin Rathbun and floral industry veteran Darryl Wiseman.
Then Sunday night, attendees will get a chance to relax and enjoy the opening party at the Georgia Aquarium, the world's largest aquarium. The one-of-a-kind facility houses more than 8 million gallons of water, 60 exhibits and five major galleries.
Day 2
A highlight of each year's opening general session is a review of the business outlooks from industry leaders. This year in Atlanta, STAFDA President Hal Look will give the Distributor State-of-the-Industry Report.