Oct 1, 2024

Fall is a busy time for almost everyone it seems and it brings some very valuable activities as companies position themselves for the 2024 / 2025 fiscal year. I hope the last year has been positive for you and your business and that you are planning greater success in the coming 12 months.

New products and technical developments are frequently the drivers of future success and the fall shows and conferences are the best and most efficient places to learn more about these new developments and how they can be a benefit to you. As I write this weeks Editor’s Message column, I have one eye trained on the Weather channel because Hurricane Helene is poised to hit south western Florida with what may be a storm surge of 15 to 20 feet. My concern is that Helene may force the closure of the 2024 IBEX Show, as Hurricane Ian did in 2022. Wikipedia shows Hurricane Ian as a deadly and extremely destructive tropical cyclone which was the third-costliest weather disaster on record worldwide. Countless boats were damaged and destroyed as were homes and buildings all along the west coast of Florida and inland up to North Carolina. Hurricane Ian hit on exactly the same dates in 2022 as Hurricane Helene is expected to hit in 2024.

Will Air Canada be able to get us to Tampa for the IBEX Show? Will the storm surge close the Tampa Convention Centre and the downtown hotels? High winds and flooding can knock out the electrical service for miles around. I guess we will know what happened by the next edition of Boating Industry Canada News Week but it will be a major setback for me in my writing if I can’t get to the show.

Last week I attended the NMEA Conference and Expo that was in Providence RI and it was a great event. You should investigate how attending the next NMEA show could benefit you.

But you don’t have to travel far to see the latest new products and to speak to the experts about them. There will be distributor shows held regionally here close to home and these offer a great opportunity to learn about the latest new products, new ways to boost your business and they also offer a very affordable way to educate and inspire your staff, especially your techs.

There is currently no hurricane threat here in Canada to derail shows scheduled to be held by C.C. Marine Distributors, Western Marine / Transat, Maritime Marine Supply, Rekord Marine and others.

I plan to attend some of these shows and for sure, I’ll be at the C.C. Marine Distributors show at Casino Rama this fall. I hope to see you there!

Andy Adams – Editor