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Good Morning,
Below is a recap of this past September’s Specialty & Agro Chemicals America show, and an update for the 2017 event returning to Charleston, SC during Labor Day week, September 6-8:
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ATTENDANCE HISTORY
Our event began in 2012 at the Wilmington, NC Hilton with 350 attendees and 46 exhibits. This past September, 1,500 attendees and 224 exhibitors participated at the Belmond Charleston Place Hotel. The growth of this event is a testimony to the value participants place on being able to connect effectively, efficiently, and affordably in a centralized forum for our agrochemical and specialty chemical industries.
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2017 EXHIBIT WAITING LIST
The exhibitor renewal process for next year’s show 2017 exhibitors has been completed, and we only have about 15 unrenewed spaces available in the main exhibit area. I will begin contacting those at the top of the waiting list to fill these spots shortly. We will have additional “meeting tabletops” available in separate rooms that companies can use for exhibit displays and a base of operations at the show. A meeting room dedicated to Research Showcases will also be featured again next year. For more details, or to register as a regular attendee, see the link below. I'll provide a further update on 2018 plans in Q1 of 2017, for those companies currently on the waiting list for the next show.
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EARLIER OPENING FOR 2017 EXHIBITS
The exhibition floor will open earlier in 2017 at 1:00 PM on Wednesday, September 6th, along with the exhibitor showcase presentation program. Gaging from this past show, this earlier opening makes sense since most attendees were already in town on Wednesday afternoon. Our smaller booth and tabletop format will remain the same so exhibitors will have plenty of time travel to Charleston and set-up before 1:00 PM.
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HOTEL OPTIONS
The 400 rooms in our block at the Belmond Charleston Place are already sold-out. There are still rooms available at the Marriott Renaissance and Courtyard – as well as many nearby hotels that are outside our block, but are reasonably priced and easy walking distance:
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GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY
It’s been an important goal of mine to use the business success of our trade show to help serve “real life” needs in our broader community. I happen to live just outside of Philadelphia, PA, which is one of many big cities plagued by what we call “stubborn facts” – defined as crime, poverty, apathy, failed educational systems, unemployment, etc. So, for those who have participated at our trade show, you may be interested to know that a portion of the event’s attendee and exhibit fees were reinvested in “significant gifts” this fall, to help support three local faith-based ministries here in Philly:
- A Food Pantry program run by a small church in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia who, in partnership with the local non-profit agency, Philabundance, work to address tangible hunger needs by serving food to 400+ people weekly and 20,000+ people annually in their community.
- An ESL Program in Northeast Philadelphia that helps teach immigrants from over 60 different countries to become more proficient in the English language and be prepared for U.S. citizenship – from diverse nationalities spanning China, Albania, Iraq, and Brazil, among others.
- A newly-formed Christian ministry group of cross-racial and cross-denominational church pastors, non-profit leaders, and business leaders, who are looking at ways that the Philadelphia faith community can come together in a more unified way to start bringing solutions to some of our city’s “stubborn facts” mentioned above.
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In closing, I want to thank you for making our Specialty and Agro Chemicals America show such a success – this is something we have built together. Best wishes to you all for a great holiday season and a happy, healthy, and successful New Year!
Tom
Tom Leahy
Tel: +1 215-882-9100
Fax: +1 215-695-5520
Tom.leahy@chemicalsamerica.com
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