London Boat Show Predictions

[Guest]

Just wondering what your general thoughts are on the boat show next month.

Like lots of other marine companies, we have invested a huge amount of time in putting together decent displays and materials.

What do you think? Good or bad show?

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[ex-Gladys]

How can we yet judge? My experience of Excel was with the O2O bije show which did so well it didn't happen this year. Venue is great, for that was spacious and airy and not crowded... may be that's why it hasn't run in 03. Ask us on 19th Jan...


<hr width=100% size=1>Larry Botheras

Anderson 26 "Amber"

 

[circumnavigation]

No thoughts, but have just returned from the Paris Boat Show. Again, the French are way ahead in this area, as it is aimed for the mass and the individual markets. The way that the salon is split up so that the professionals are not squashed by the hoard and the hoards can do their thing without being pressurised away from the stand by no communication from those holding the fort on the stand, like what happens in London. If you want to go further, just visit Germany between the two and you can pitch yourself where you feel you need to be. For me, it has to be for the professionals first, and the masses afterwards. Most forumites would prefer to do their thing without the masses!

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.mpcee.co.uk/katoema.html>http://www.mpcee.co.uk/katoema.html</A>

 

[Guest]

I suspect I would be put off making purchases. Anyone going has to make at least one tube change so carrying around bulky items is less desirable. Consequently, I think more of the buyers will be pushed to mail order.


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[Robin]

We are going to miss this one, first time for years. Coming from Poole it adds another hour each way maybe so now we will probably just do Southampton show rather than both.

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[LORDNELSON]

I thought of going but went to the Southampton show this year and decided that I could miss the LBS (I live on the South Coast). I expect for people north of London the LBS makes a lot of sense. As an individual boat owner I examine and discuss things of interest at the show but prefer to buy after making more enquiries and determining a good price. Lugging things home from the show is a drag.

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[Trevethan]

As others have said, can't say yet as none of us have attended!

However I was in Excel last week at a mining conference, (first time for me at the venue) and I was fairly impressed. It's a huge space, and with the exam halls opened up as well, it will be vast.

The toilet facilities didn't look to extensive though..

One tip, try and avoid the costa coffee.. it was awful.

The location suits me down the ground. We have our boat at Limehouse so any goodies I buy are 15 minute train ride from being fitted.

For people visiting from afar, the Cruising Association has a few rooms for visitors for about £30 a night B&B, which is very favourable for London, they might have been booked up by now, but maybe worth trying.



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[milltech]

Goody!

<hr width=100% size=1>John
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.allgadgets.co.uk>http://www.allgadgets.co.uk</A>

 

[Strathglass]

Difficult to predict the future. It will be much easier after the show and look back.

I don't think the precice location within London is really relevent. It probably affects the stand people rather than the visitors.
The general absence of medium cost accommadation and external eating places is not good at the new location. This will increase the cost of exhibiting.
Most visitors are from outside London and the cost and time to get to the city is much greater than travelling within London by public transport.

On another tack.

I don't think that the majority of people on this forum or indeed visitors to the boat shows are 'profesionals' who think they should have special arrangements made for them to tout theis own business. I thought that the trade shows and the preview days were more for that.
The boat show has different priorities for everyone. Some companies will want to make trade contacts others will want to turn over as much goods and cash as possible and some will just treat it as a big social occasion.
It can only be good that it is able to expand rather than companies waiting to walk into dead mans shoes and join the previously closed ranks of an exclusive club.
There are many top professionals in the marine industry who contribute to this forum but the majority of formites have one thing in common . An intrest in boats and in fellow forum members. There is virtually no 'they are only punters not professionals' shown on the forum.

Only time will tell whether you have made the right decision.

Iain

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[bigmart]

I have exhibited at Excel (a trade show for the building industry). It was the worst attended show I have ever been to.

Living, as I do, in Hampshire, It takes longer to drive to Excel than I does to drive to the NEC in Birmingham. Who wants to lug loads of gear home by overpriced, overcrowded public transport?

Once there the in house facilities are good but the accomodation is poor & expensive.

I will avoid the show for as long as I can. Southampton is a better event & the weather helps too.

For me, the move to Excel is a big mistake. If you live in Essex you may disagree.

Martin

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[Guest]

It would help if you said what sector you were in?

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[StephenSails]

Assuming that you can get to Waterloo I cannot see how you can add another hour on each way, Boating Business did some travel tests and its more or less the same what ever mode of tranport if you are travellng up from southern areas, as long as you use common sense and leave at the right times. Taxi from centre of town is only 15 minutes away!

<hr width=100% size=1>http://www.yachtinguniverse.com

 

[Robin]

As far as I can see the only sensible route in for us by car from Poole is around the M25 and in from the east rather than across central London. Our club organises a coach each year to LBS and their times quoted for this year agree with me, an extra hour over the time in previous years to Earls Court. The coach I believe will be leaving for the show at the same time as before and departing from the show some 45 minutes earlier than before, so all told the time at the show will be 1.75hrs less than it used to be at Earls Court. The cost for the day is also somewhat higher, so more cost for more time in a coach and less time at the show. As far as I know the numbers travelling are well down on previous years, several friends who like us have been every year for 'n' years have said they will not be going either.

Yes letting the train take the strain is an option, at considerable cost, and with the problem of carrying any purchases across from mainline to underground or whatever.

No thanks, I'll stick to just Southampton Boat Show in future I think.

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[Gunfleet]

15 mins down the Highway and through the tunnel? They must have done it at midnight!

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[kimhollamby]

...errr, actually I think they did! There was a lot of stuff about places to eat and drink, all thoroughly tested.

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