Florida Pool Pro
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• March 2014
5
ED’s COLUMN
Wendy Parker Barsell
FSPA Executive Director
We did it again
We did it again … had a successful
trade show with more attendance and
exhibitors than the past three years.
Since the drop after the recession, Show
attendance has been steady and this
year we saw about a 5 percent increase
in all areas. Approximately 4,200 people
registered as either attendees or exhibitors
and close to 900 industry professionals took
education courses, the most since 2010.
To get things started Friday morning
the Freedom High School marching band
entered the hall, played the national anthem
then proceeded through the exhibits. This
was the most exciting opening we have
ever had and it set the tone for an exciting
two days of networking in the exhibit hall.
The aisles stayed full throughout the day
both Friday and Saturday and exhibitors
reported very strong interest from the
attendees.
TheFloridaSwimmingPoolAssociation
was giving away free tablet computers to
companies who applied for membership –
a total of 32 people walked away with
the tablet, 15 months of membership and
expect to receive a refund for the education
they paid for as non-members. If you
missed joining at the show watch for our
next promotion and see what you can gain
in addition to the many member benefits.
The FSPA staff each contributed to
make the show a success. Next time you
speak to or see any of the staff please give
Best Showcased Product
You voted and the Best Showcased Product at the
Everything Under the Sun
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Expo goes to
Sip-N-Oodle
!
is the
pool noodle you can
fill with your favorite
beverage and drink
while you float.
them a word of thanks for their time and
efforts: Bernice Ryder-Smit, Charis Tyson,
Kate Vella, Valerie Swika, ShannonAdams
and Maggie Kloepfer. I couldn’t have made
this happen without them!
