Did anyone else think Southampton BS...

If you’re planning on visiting coming Sunday you could find the pontoons closed. I’ve just checked XCWeather. The rest of the outside stands could be literally holding on to stock.
 
Seven Spades said:
I don't understand how you work out how to fill an exhibition like this and not lose money. Clearly if they don't fill the place with exhibitors then no one will come. It seems to me they they are trying to give away tickets to encourage people to come, but it seems to me that they might be better off reducing the prices of the stands and charging for tickets. there are two reasons if people pay for tickets they will be a better quality of visitor and secondly people pay for content, I don't think that the current model is working.
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Exactly how they killed London, totally agree.
 
I’ve been before when the pontoons were closed. It was windy. Fine for sailors but not suitable for members of the public with children, pushchairs etc. H&S probably make the call.
Sunday is a way off. Forecast will change before then.
 
Brilliant.

Went on Saturday and usual atmosphere, very good stands and a great way to spend the day. Managed some excellent bargains as well, on one item about 30% cheaper than I could have purchased any other way.

Very happy.
 
TopBanana said:
Haven't been to the show before. Was hoping to get a good deal on some new winches. Would I be wasting my time?
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Yes. Southampton used to be the place to get end-of-season deals, but the internet has killed that side of things dead. It's still a nice day out, but the bargains are long gone.

I'm visiting Southampton University for work on Thursday and if I have time afterwards hope to visit the show for a few hours before my flight home.
 
On saturday, which was pretty calm, I was thinking the southernmost pontoon was a bit wobbly for joe public. Dread to think what it would be like in any kind of chop.

Now that London isn't happening, does it mean all the people who felt the perennial need to post that things weren't as good as it was in their day at earls court have to apply that to southampton rather than excel? My main disappointment about southampton this year is that it hadn't expanded as a result of London being cancelled.
 
laika said:
Now that London isn't happening, does it mean all the people who felt the perennial need to post that things weren't as good as it was in their day at earls court have to apply that to southampton rather than excel?
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It certainly would appear so.
 
laika said:
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Now that London isn't happening, does it mean all the people who felt the perennial need to post that things weren't as good as it was in their day at earls court have to apply that to southampton rather than excel? My main disappointment about southampton this year is that it hadn't expanded as a result of London being cancelled.
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I don't feel the need to criticise either - and am on record saying that I quite liked the London show. We've been going to the Southampton show for years and I do believe that there has been a slow decline over the last few years - though not as marked as it was at London. The cost of a stand in any of these shows is ridiculously high and I think many of the smaller (and a few of the larger) exhibitors are being put off. Given that it must bring a great deal of money and prestige into the city, it probably should be run on a not-for-profit basis by the city council rather than as a profit making exercise.
 
Hmmm as to lack of bargains I am not convinced this is fair.

Firstly, on a lot of items the post can amount to a significant part of the cost. While I know some might look at it differently the fact you are there and arent paying postage is a positive in itself.

However, I found that many of the suppliers were willing to have deal not withstanding. It is well worth chatting and seeing what you can negotiate - you may be surprised.

Also I noticed quite a good number of Boat show offers, which seemed genuine offers to me.
 
laika said:
Now that London isn't happening, does it mean all the people who felt the perennial need to post that things weren't as good as it was in their day at earls court have to apply that to southampton rather than excel?
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Only if the people - OK, I'm thinking of one forumite in particular - also turn up who spent years telling us that the London show wasn't in trouble, that the steadily shrinking numbers of exhibitors, halls and days were a sign of strength and that the mergers with "Geriatric Cruising", "You And Your Dog" and "Carpet Fitting International" (may contain exaggeration for effect) were all proof of a booming business. I have a picture of him somewhere ...

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For the record, I liked the London Boat Show when there was anything to see there, preferred Excel to Earls' Court, and still like Southampton though I preferred the scruffier version of 30 years ago.
 
ip485 said:
Hmmm as to lack of bargains I am not convinced this is fair.

Firstly, on a lot of items the post can amount to a significant part of the cost. While I know some might look at it differently the fact you are there and arent paying postage is a positive in itself.

However, I found that many of the suppliers were willing to have deal not withstanding. It is well worth chatting and seeing what you can negotiate - you may be surprised.

Also I noticed quite a good number of Boat show offers, which seemed genuine offers to me.
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I think the number of genuine bargains to be had at shows like this is small - until the last day. Then you can find exhibitors who are not inclined to pack it all up and ship it back and, hence, are more willing to really bring prices down.
 
Went yesterday. Enjoyed the show, despite a feeling that it looked much like last year's show (and not much different from the year before). Nevertheless, a worthwhile day out.

I suspect next year will be better; news of the demise of London probably came too late for manufacturers to change their plans at short notice in favour of Southampton.

There did seem to be a huge number of very expensive motor yachts, and a fair number of very expensive sailing yachts. Clearly, makers believe there is a lot of money about. Relatively few small boats, all from niche specialist boat builders it seems; from my point of view, the smaller boats were more interesting.
 
laika said:
My main disappointment about southampton this year is that it hadn't expanded as a result of London being cancelled.
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No axe to grind:
I think that the cancellation of London would have been too late to impact greatly on exhibitors planning for Southampton this year. It may be that, now the industry is clear on where they stand with ExCel that they can plan to do Southampton in 2019.
 
maby said:
it probably should be run on a not-for-profit basis by the city council rather than as a profit making exercise.
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Which, of course, is how it is currently structured albeit run by the trade body rather than a city council, and it is pretty clear which of the two is more relevant to a national/international marine industry event.
 
Elecglitch said:
Which, of course, is how it is currently structured albeit run by the trade body rather than a city council, and it is pretty clear which of the two is more relevant to a national/international marine industry event.
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The fact that British Marine is itself not-for-profit does not mean that it doesn't run the Southampton Boat Show at a profit. It obviously does, and it obviously should: profit from SIBS provides funds to pay for a lot of what BM does. But let's not fool ourselves that it does not turn a profit.

But to say it 'probably should be run on a not-for-profit basis... rather than as a profit-making exercise' seems to me silly. It would be nice as consumers if all sorts of things were run without a profit - until we remember that then they wouldn't be run at all.

Whether BM has been running SIBS (and LIBS) well is another matter. By squeezing exhibitors and charging low (net) fees to visitors, it appeals to time wasters, reducing the return for exhibitors, and forces many exhibitors to decide they can't afford the stand price, which reduces the value to boating enthusiasts. The resulting high price of a stand inclines manufacturers to treat a stand as a showcase rather than a shop that needs space for stock, so customers can't use the show to do their shopping. The departure of many brands in each product area means you can't even use the show to compare alternative products. Including non-marine items such as cars, gazebos and hot tubs is to put a sticking plaster over the cancer, reducing the event's focus on - er - boats and in turn attracting a greater proportion of non-boat enthusiasts to prop up ticket sales but return no revenue to the boat exhibitors who have paid so much to exhibit.

And perhaps the internet drives the decline of the phenomenon of industry shows as well: I can do pretty much the same research from a sofa, and much of it better, and once I know what I want I can find the cheapest price online. Only the boats themselves are immune as it's appealing to experience them first-hand. Yet the boat exhibitors have declined hugely too, not to mention the number of models per exhibitor, as a result of the vicious cycles above.

This is a market where the incumbent has a huge advantage. Quality can decline a lot below the level it would need to be as a start-up, as its mere existence reduces the customer volume and exhibitors' marketing spend available to even a brilliant new entrant. Like a tired coffee shop in a village, or an existing third political party dividing the vote that a new and more popular party could garner.

The critical mass at Paris or Düsseldorf still holds those shows together, and perhaps the demise of London and Southampton will see more Brits visiting those shows. And who knows, maybe combining LIBS and SIBS at Southampton, and avoiding the same spineless decisions that result in reducing the appeal to real interested parties, will rejuvenate the British show?
 
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BelleSerene said:
The resulting high price of a stand inclines manufacturers to treat a stand as a showcase rather than a shop that needs space for stock, so customers can't use the show to do their shopping.
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Showcase is fine by me; I don't want to do my shopping at the boatshow because I'd be turning into some kind of Sherpa progressively humping more and more stuff around and eventually having to get it home. It does need to be a genuine showcase though, with all the kit set up and working and available to play with, and experts on hand to talk to, not just a three-dimensional brand advert as is sometimes the case.

Pete
 
prv said:
Showcase is fine by me; I don't want to do my shopping at the boatshow because I'd be turning into some kind of Sherpa progressively humping more and more stuff around and eventually having to get it home. It does need to be a genuine showcase though, with all the kit set up and working and available to play with, and experts on hand to talk to, not just a three-dimensional brand advert as is sometimes the case.

Pete
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Saw lots of signs saying they’d hold purchases for you.
 
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