Gripes

[rawheels]

THey're been different colors each year since they've started doing these. Actually, I don't ever wear the one given me. I don't feel I need to be a walking billboard for Bendix-King's obsolete and otherwise useless for Sport Aviation avionics.

I've only been attending for 10 years, so I'm not sure how long the shirts have been around, but I know that I had orange ones from 2005-2008 and it seems there were older ones than those at the event. I'm pretty sure that 2009 was the first change in color (yellow) and I remember looking around when we got there and thinking what happened to all of the volunteers? If they don't want to go back to orange, could we at least get some day-glo or something that stands out in the crowd?

[Steve "Limey Owen]

The orange Volunteer shirts where not used again after they cause "issues" in the aircraft parking area's. All Volunteer crews working in Flight Line Operations be it Vintage, Home Built, Warbirds, N40 etc wear Orange vests. The mass of Orange Volunteer T's was confusing to pilots taxing. I do not believe there were any accidents, just a few near misses. They only used Orange once that I am aware of .That was in 2008 They used Yellow for 09 Blue 2010 and 12 Green?? 2011 Red 2013..

[Kevin O'Halloran]

Why do they even try to have forums while the Aero Shell team is performing ????
it is impossable to hear the speaker !!!!
they should have them perform first--and not schedule any forums at that time.
its a insult to the people trying to get their knowledge accross to the people attending the forum
Kevin

[cptomes]

Different kind of Gripe.

I tried to find a tripod adapter. 1/4" to 3/8" to mount a fluid head on a monopod for my daughter to use. My guess is that, during Airventure, more pictures are taken by more cameras than at any other time and place in the State of Wisconsin during the rest of the year. So, I thought, there must be a camera vendor here somewhere. I couldn't find one. I eventually drove to downtown Oshkosh, to Camera Casino, and just as they were closing for the day bought one, a $1.15 purchase.

I struck up a conversation with the salesperson, asked him why they didn't get a booth at the show for the week, there must be lots of business. He said they used to, EAA had been increasing booth fees every year, and demanded 35% of the gross sales. They would have had to increase their prices 50% just to break even. Booth fee of $7000?

I've never been involved in running this kind of huge convention, but it strikes me that there should be some differentiation between the out of state vendors who hop from convention to convention and sell at inflated prices because they are the only vendor at the show, and a local business in Oshkosh.

Whatever the "normal policies" are for trade shows/conventions, I don't care. I'm an EAA member, and this guy was unhappy with EAA. We need to keep Oshkosh residents and businesses happy to see us. I think it's absolutely ridiculous that I couldn't find a $1 tripod adapter at the highest concentration of cameras in the Midwest. When I heard the reason they stopped renting their booth, I was angry. EAA needs to stop being all about sucking every possible dollar out of exhibitors, visitors, and members. I understand that it takes money to keep all the programs rolling, but didn't this year's financial report show that we had an ADDITIONAL $2 MILLION in the bank? AFTER all the improvements to the grounds?

I'm not advocating we return to non-air conditioned sheds and dirt roads, but there's got to be a better equilibrium point than screwing the local Oshkosh businesses. Set some requirement, like business address in City of Oshkosh that's in operation year round, or something like that. Then, if an out of state carpetbagger wants to game the system to have EAA take a little less of their margin at least they have to pay rent (and someone pays state/local taxes) to someone in Oshkosh.

Please tell me this guy was exaggerating. 35% of gross and $7000 booth fee? Really? Now I think I understand why the exhibit halls were set up with walkways (the floor space that DIDN'T have booths...) in a grid and not long rows like every other trade show I've been to. We didn't have enough booths filled to do it. While I liked the ease of navigating, it struck me that exhibitors must have been down by at least 10% from previous years to allow that much open floor space. Is the economy that bad, or are we charging too much for booths?

[FlyingRon]

Airventure is *NOT* an entity to itself. The EAA relies on the profit from Airventure to fund both the EAA proper and the EAA Foundation (the museum and educational programs) for the rest of the year.

Having a mil in reserve (about one years budget from the show) covers if they get another disaster like Sloshkosh or the farking feds sucking a half-mil unexpectedly.

[krw920]

... Now I think I understand why the exhibit halls were set up with walkways (the floor space that DIDN'T have booths...) in a grid and not long rows like every other trade show I've been to. We didn't have enough booths filled to do it. While I liked the ease of navigating, it struck me that exhibitors must have been down by at least 10% from previous years to allow that much open floor space. Is the economy that bad, or are we charging too much for booths?

I am pretty sure Jack said they had the highest number of vendors ever this year, but I may have heard that incorrectly.

I do agree that local vendors be given some sort of discount to be on the grounds if they have a relevent product that members may be looking for.

[Holly Williams]

Hello Everyone,

I just wanted to touch base on the references to exhibits in the thread above. In the exhibitor sales department, we try our best to make exhibiting at AirVenture a rewarding experience for all exhibitors with various budgets and ROI levels. We offer many different options for all budgets ranging from the Fly Market to indoor space inside of our exhibit hangars. In 2013, we saw a record number of exhibitors with 821 that ranged from the Main Aircraft Display to Ultralight to our new College Park venue.

The floorplans for the exhibit venues were designed several years ago and have not changed in a few years. Hangars A, B and D have more of a straight aisle layout, where Hangar C (which was expanded a few years ago) has a layout that features more islands and exhibit spaces with three sides of frontage. These layouts were designed based on feedback from our business partners so that they receive more visability for their investment.

From a revenue perspective, we try to make participating in our event economical for everyone. That is why we offer a wide variety of venues based on the budget of the exhibitor. We charge a flat rate for their space based on square footage and we do NOT collect a percentage of sales. The revenue from all of our AirVenture Exhibits do fund many of the year-long programs that we offer through EAA. We try our best to reach out to local companies and organizations and will continue to do this in the future. We will also continue to create new ideas for exhibit venues like College Park, which is a great new addition to AirVenture and highlighted EAA's commitment to education and the future of aviation.

Best Regards,
Holly Williams
EAA Business Relationship Manager, Exhibits

[Hal Bryan]

I am pretty sure Jack said they had the highest number of vendors ever this year, but I may have heard that incorrectly.

That's correct - it was a record number this year:
http://www.airventure.org/news/2013/...ture-2013.html

[CarlOrton]

Thank You, Holly, for providing factual data.

That said, I was not the original poster, I can see where it could be worthwhile to have some type of camera vendor on-site.

[Cary]

FWIW, the battery vendor (can't recall which building they were in) also had a lot of camera-specific thingies, in addition to an enormous number of off-the-wall batteries. While I was waiting, about 3rd in line, one of the customers ahead of me asked about a camera-mount, and they had it. When it was my turn, I was looking for a rechargeable battery pack for my 9 year old Vertex-Standard hand-held--and after rifling through a box, the rep found one!

I think that's the kind of vendor that belongs at Airventure--not the sellers of Egyptian sheets, pots & pans, folding ladders, and such. If I want to go to a generic flea market, then that's my call, but when I go to Airventure, I admit to some disappointment and annoyance when I'm bugged by hawkers of non-aviation stuff.

Cary