There are as many ways to experience the Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International as there are attendees.
Some people are all business, planning ahead how they’ll attack the show floor to wring every last possible bit of information from the hours it’s open. Others attend as part of a working vacation, so they take it easy, strolling leisurely up and down the aisles and lingering over favorite exhibits.
Others arrive in a group, breaking out into smaller clusters so they can cover the floor more efficiently. And still others get to the show early, using what they learn during Wednesday Education Day seminars to better prepare them for buying decisions on the floor.
However you do it, there’s no arguing that after 30 years, the Pumper Expo is the place to get things done when a profitable, performing business is your goal. Here’s how these folks work the floor:
Edwin Johnson is just getting started in portable restroom service as an addition to his septic and rooter service east of Vancouver. He talked with PRO during his first spin around the show floor.
“My plan was just to go through the show on the first day to see everything, then the second day, to visit the booths I was interested in and talk with people.” He keeps mental notes, not feeling the need to write anything in his show program.
He made a second floor tour to address his vehicle needs. “I’m also rigging up a new vacuum truck, and needed some ideas for what I should have to make it work for longer routes,” he adds. He found exhibitors helpful in putting together the ideal pump/tank configuration for his routes, which include a 70-mile radius trip between septic customers, portable placements and his disposal site.
Dennis Garland has a planned approach to his company’s floor time at the Expo. It’s almost always about research and ordering.
“I like to contact the vendors before we get here, to let them know we’re actually coming to the show,” Garland says. “I try to make appointments, or at least give them an idea of when we’re going to be on the floor. I like to do the ‘meet and greet’ during the day. Then, if we’re going to buy products or new units, we’ll sit down with them at the end of the day to do that.”
Garland sees the Expo as more than just a show-and-tell event. For him, it’s about taking advantage of special show pricing and other deals to be had. “It’s a good time to actually come in to buy the floor units they have on display at the show. We always set aside X amount of dollars each year to do that.”
He feels this is not only a good time to stretch the company’s budget, but also to engender goodwill with the vendors he’s buying from. “It’s a good deal for us, but we also help them out, taking the units off their hands so they don’t have to pack them up and take them back. It just works out all around.” He finds this an effective way to cement stronger ties and better working relationships with manufacturers.
“Thursday is our busiest day,” he says. “We try to meet everybody and see the new products. All the manufacturers and business owners are the same: They want to get in and meet people, then relax, look around and see other things, then do their business the next day.” He doesn’t make purchases right away, either. “We like to let the booths get settled in, let everybody get comfortable, then we’ll start placing some orders on Friday, around noon or so.”
And before he does any floor walking, Garland takes advantage of the Education Day sessions to help decide which purchases make the most sense. He says anytime you’re more educated on where the industry is headed, you’re better prepared to make smart buying decisions.
Will Stewart is a licensed plumber in his father’s business, which has recently expanded into portables. When they attend the Expo, his dad tends to spend a long time at each booth, so they split up to cover more ground. They don’t do a lot of pre-planning.
“My dad tends to look more for the portables side of the business, but we both tend to just get on the floor and take one aisle at a time to see what gets our attention. But we look at products for the separate sides of the business, so we get more done.
