In the weeks following StonExpo/Marmomacc Americas, the most common question I typically get from industry members is, "How was the show?" It makes sense, because for about half a decade now, we've been hoping this will be the year we pull out of this mess. This year, I can honestly say that I've gotten feedback from dozens of exhibitors at the event, and all of them were extremely positive. Fabricators were buying machinery (yes, machinery),accessories and stone, and it was easily the best American trade show that I have seen in several years
Because I don't sell machinery and I don't sell stone, my assessment of a trade show comes from my conversations with the people who do. To a man, everyone I spoke with was upbeat, and many of them didn't even wait for me to ask how it was going. More than once, the greeting I received was, "Pretty good show, Mike, don't you think?" Even yesterday, one of the exhibitors led off an e-mail to me by calling StonExpo/Marmomacc Americas "the busiest show in years." One of my favorite moments of the show came just an hour or so before it ended -- and the exhibit hall was still crowded, which is somewhat rare of a trade show as it winds down. I was talking with a machinery supplier and commented on the "sold" sign on one of his machines, saying, "Nice, you sold this?" His response was, "Actually, we sold five of this, and three of the other one."