With more than 130 new exhibitors, a larger-than-ever Outdoor Demo Area, a 12 percent increase in exhibitors and record attendees, this year’s GIE+EXPO was the largest in history.
The show featured close to 500 exhibits and the introduced the outdoor UTV test track. Total indoor square footage has grown by 20,000 feet and will be even bigger next year, according to Outdoor Power Equipment Institute President and CEO Kris Kiser. “We’re going to have to break into the north hall next year,” he said.
Kiser added that show organizers are making a formal effort to partner with the utility market. “Every year, we’re seeing more of them and we think it’s a great home for that,” he said.
Green Industry Conference
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the Green Industry Conference featured more than 50 education sessions and workshops. New this year were sessions marked for collaborative learning that involved peer learning. Small groups drew on their personal experience and addressed real-world issues and challenges in the landscape industry.
TurfMutt
Responsible lawn care initiative TurfMutt has reached more than 38 million people to date, and OPEI has plans to take it further in the coming months. They’ve entered into a partnership with Scholastic Education to grow the character-based brand and reach more students, teachers and families. The partnership will roll out a soft launch this October, with a hard launch in February.
The new program with Scholastic will feature a full lineup of newly illustrated environmental superhero characters like Green Ranger, Professor Botany and Big Rooty. Kiser also mentioned that OPEI will be looking at taking TurfMutt to television next winter.
PLANET
PLANET CEO Sabeena Hickman shared the new focus of the organization at GIE+EXPO as well. “We want more clarity,” she said, adding that the new brand could involve a name change. Moving forward, PLANET will be more focused on advocacy, education and changing the perception of the industry, she said.
“We’re focused on a new brand for the association,” she said. “We want to resonate more.”
Hardscape North America
Hardscape North America announced the launch of a new logo at this year’s show.
The branding makeover officially started at the conclusion of the 2014 Hardscape North America show. “The logo, website and all promotional materials will project a more modern brand that helps increase the show’s identity and more importantly, better resonates with attendees,” said Jessica Chase, ICPI Director of Marketing.
The new graphic follows a recent logo and brand re-launch of the show’s producer, the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI), announced earlier this year. The new Hardscape North America logo relates to ICPI’s with similar fonts while maintaining a distinctive graphic identity.
The new logo also further emphasizes the word “hardscape,” the show’s theme and “HNA”, the acronym widely used by the hardscape industry. Attendees, exhibitors and others can expect to see the new logo for 2015 show promotions and beyond.