On the Show Floor: "We’re doing business here!" "It has been good. There are a lot of people here who make decisions who have come by to see if we can help them. And in many cases we can. So it was worth our while and theirs to be at this show." photo by David Hathcox The REAL DEAL EXPO show opened Thursday and pounded with excitement all day as distributors and suppliers got down to business. That was the comment of Warren Love, vice president, central region, Integrated Distribution Solutions (IDS), Ann Arbor, MI, about midway through the first day of the 2005 AWMA REAL DEAL EXPO. The show floor was busy and thriving with action as distributors, manufacturers and suppliers connected to do business. William Lanigan, executive vice president, operations, MI-JACK Products, Hazel Crest, IL, and his team were there to demonstrate their company’s new, innovative internal locking mechanism for trucks to prevent cargo theft, as well as their thermal insulated bags and product quilts. "There is a very good flow of traffic," Lanigan said. "People are interested in our products and we are doing business." Larry N. Roth, national sales manager at Ol’ Smokehaus by Landes, Clayton, OH, said his team was experiencing excellent traffic and lots of interested buyers. "I’ve been coming for the past 18 years," he said. "This show is on the comeback trail, well on its way to being one of the premier shows." Roth said "good people" have been stopping by to visit. "It’s going very well." Tom Noble, director of sales, western operations, at Shock Coffee, said his booth experienced steady traffic, and they were seeing the "right" people. Likewise, Young Y. Hwang, general manager at KT&G U.S.A., Inc., Newark, DE, said his team had made some new contacts, although he felt that traffic was a bit slow. Hwang suggested a future location in the east or Midwest for the show. But J.R. McCook, regional sales manager, Mrs. Freshley’s, Thomasville, GA, echoed the sentiments of numerous exhibitors who felt the Las Vegas location helps with the turnout, which this year is 30 percent higher than 2004. REAL DEAL EXPO will be in Las Vegas again next year. "We’re seeing a lot of our wholesaler customers, as well as a lot of new people,"McCook said. "We are having a better turnout in Las Vegas than we’ve had in other locations." Mrs. Freshley’s, division of Flowers Snack Group, sells strictly to convenience store wholesalers, McCook noted. "This is a wonderful opportunity for us to say thank you to our customers for doing business with us, and to meet new customers," said William J. Vastine, executive vice president, Galactic, Arlington, TX. Galactic designs performance improvement programs for companies, developing incentives to change people’s behavior, he explained. Barbara Henner, vice president, finance, at Warehouse Innovations, Inc., Lake Mary, FL, said her company, which produces systems for such services as cigarette stamping and weight verification, had generated "lots of good leads." She added that her team saw "lots of new faces, and that’s great." photo by David Hathcox A wide variety of items were available to try in the exhibit hall. Meanwhile, the show gave an opportunity for executives at Bekenton, maker of "The Brave" brand cigarettes, to promote the fact that the company has moved its operations from South America to the United States. "We are proud to announce The Brave will be made at our new plant in North Carolina," said Stephen Falowski, president. Michael Harris, exhibit manager for Kraft Foods Global, Inc., said he was pleased with the turnout and the overall response to Kraft’s new items, such as the South Beach Diet meal replacement bars, new Balance Bar trail mix and some new beverage items. "It’s been very positive," Harris said. Hershey Co., which just changed its name from Hershey Foods, was also pleased with the response at the show. "Attendance is up, more vendors are on the floor, and the morning sessions today were excellent," said Hershey’s Tom Joyce. As the show’s first day prepared to conclude for the evening reception and Chairman’s Gala, AWMA President Scott Ramminger summed it up. "It is a great show," he said. "All of the exhibitors and distributors I’ve talked to seem happy. A lot of business is getting done." One distributor, Mohamud A. Mohamed, CEO at Mass Discount Merchandizer, Dallas, TX, agreed. "Some of the manufacturers are giving deals," he said. "And that’s good." For more information on attending the 2007 AWMA REAL DEAL EXPO, contact customer service at either 800-564-4220 or 703-449-6418 or awmaregistration@jspargo.com