Room For Growth
About a year ago, I sat down with the Camp Business team to talk through the new things I was contemplating for 2015. As we riffed off each other, we quickly focused on two ideas. The first has already run its course; the Great Play Giveaway awarded the winner playground equipment worth a minimum of $15,000 for their camp or facility.
The second was to launch a trade show and conference where the exhibitors, speakers, and attendees interacted in a meaningful and fun way. That event—The Camp Business Fall Festival—is taking place September 24, 2015 at the Shisler Conference Center in Wooster, Ohio—and you’re invited to attend.
The schedule for the day is simple:
- 10 a.m.—Keynote by Ron Ciancutti, Purchasing Director, Cleveland Metroparks
- 11 a.m.—Breakout Session #1
- 12 p.m.—Walking lunch with exhibitors (indoor and outdoor exhibits—including the ability to “try before you buy.”)
- 1:30 p.m.—Breakout Session #2
- 2:30 p.m.—Breakout Session #3
- 4 p.m.—Outdoor BBQ/Picnic, Open Bar & Olympics Competition
You can review all the sessions on pages 34-36, but as good as those are they kind of miss the point. If all goes well, when you arrive for registration, you’ll meet the rest of your Fall Festival team. Together, you’ll create a team uniform (decorate a T-shirt) and then decide which team members are going to compete for total world domination in the Camp Business Olympics.
Let me explain.
Each exhibitor that wants to participate (and it seems like a lot do) is going to set up a contest of some sort using their product. So, imagine attending a show where you go from booth to booth to compete for the coveted Olympics prize. Events might look like this:
- Ventrac—See how quickly you can drive one of their mowers through an obstacle course
- Civilian Marksmanship Program—Shoot an air rifle at a target. See how well you can score.
Of course, if you’re more of a cheerleader or coach than an athlete, you’re always welcome to help yourself to some great BBQ and a beer or soda and cheer on your team.
In the end, of course, everybody wins. The combination of low-cost, excellent speakers, awesome exhibits and three unique, but complimentary audiences (children’s camps, parks and recreation and landscape architects) makes this a win-win-win.
See you in September!
Rodney J. Auth
Publisher