2010 NBVA

[cavity]

Went to the show today for the first time.  Nothing exciting.  Mostly reputable distributors and manufacturers of toys, candy, and machines.  A&A, NW, Beaver, Cardinal, Brand, Oak Leaf, Concord, etc...  About 30+ in total.  Some eats and a drink.  Got lots of free 1.1",  2", and one 3"(NW) samples along with some free candy, tats, stickers, a tee shirt...and a hat from Concord .  Tons of brochures!!!  Schmoozed  with all the reps. 

Highlight....

Meeting THE MAN himself - Roger Folz and Alicia(Publisher of Vending Times Magazine)  Talked to Roger for about 10-15 minutes, some vending, but mostly about flying airplanes.  Like me(Commercial), he is also a pilot(Private/Instrument) with about 3000 hours.  He was a private pilot for many years and enjoyed flying all over the country for work and play.  He even whipped out his wallet to show me photos of some of the planes he's owned and flew over the years.  His favorite?  a Cessna 340.  I even asked him for his autograph after our discussion(I see a lot of celebrities on my flights and usually don't ask them, but this was ROGER FOLZ!).  Maybe it will give me some motivation

Roger spoke for about 40 mins., they had 3 other speakers throughout the afternoon.

I asked several of the booths with machines how much they wanted for them after the show.  Pretty pricey if you ask me.  I won't be going back to buy any.  NW even wanted more $$ on some of  their racks and Tripleplays than I can get them for at Sam's Club , go figure!

Concord has a few new flavors out.  The Rep, Stan Moore, said they have tried to fix the cracking we sometimes see with the 850's at Sam's.  He gave me his card and said to give him a ring if we have any problems.  If you want more variety through Sam's, he said to see a manager, they should be able to get you the full list of product.  He said that the Sam's website will be modified soon to show their products in a full drop down menu.  They typically ship from TN and IL.

Most of the distributors were offering a "SHOW DISCOUNT" about 10%-20%, with free shipping.  However, I didn't purchase anything there today.

The show has gotten much smaller through the years according to my conversation with Roger and Alecia Lavay, Vending times publisher.        -Was if fun?  Yes.  Would I go again?  No, not for the $150 ticket price.  You can see everything these nice folks have on the internet for free.  I'm just happy I live here and didn't have to book a flight and hotel room.

Questions/Comments?  let me know.

-Steve

[West Coast Vend LLC]

Thank Steve for the NBVA show review.  You did a great job!  I had heard it was a small event. It is way to far from me to spend the airfare so I am glad you had the opportunity to go and tell us all about it.

Thank again.

Gary