By Members of the Chief Architect Team visited Nashville for the combined Remodeling Show and DeckExpo. Chief Architect was an exhibitor alongside hundreds of other top manufacturer’s in the industry. We’ve recruited Scott Harris, the Vice President of Sales and Marketing to share a little bit about the show experience.
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Scott, what can you tell us about the Remodeling Show and DeckExpo?
We really enjoyed the location of the show this year, Nashville was great. However, the overall attendance on the show floor seemed low compared to previous years. The attendance just wasn’t as strong as it has been in Baltimore.
It used to be that tradeshows were the best place to get information on the latest technologies. That’s just not true in today’s world. You can find information on nearly anything online.
The show is great for people that want to learn about tools. You can physically see how the new laser saw works. This is one of the greatest benefits of the show, the ability to do a hands-on test drive.
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Did you get a feel for how the housing market is doing in this region?
The people I spoke with said housing is strong. The largest issue is the lack of availability of labor which is holding people back with projects. This could be one of the contributing factors to the diminishing attendance at the shows.
Most recently, there’s also the short-term impact of the major hurricanes in Florida and Texas. The devastation of the hurricanes has compounded the labor shortage and has increased material costs.
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Did you notice any shifting trends in the industry?
Decks are a larger demographic at the show. We noticed many new lighting technologies for decks such as lighting built directly into railings and stairs. There’s always been a vast amount of technology regarding composite decks; however, we’re noticing more and more new railing technologies evolving.
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Did Chief Architect host any events in Nashville?
Yes, we were privileged to host our Introductory, Intermediate, and Kitchen/Bath/Interiors 2-day training classes. The training attendees were a great group of people. There was a lot of learning that went on and our customers gained valuable tools to help them be more successful in their business.
In addition to the training, we hosted an evening reception and networking event at a Restaurant in downtown Nashville.
Downtown Nashville is vibrant. It’s the music capital of the United States. Every aspiring musician, writer, producer, is down there demonstrating their talents just off of Broadway. It was very exciting to be right in the midst of it all. It also allowed for the opportunity to connect with Chief Architect customers in the area as well as to meet other people that were interested in Chief Architect.
A big thank you to Scott for sharing this with us! It’s always great to get to attend these shows and touch base with our customers. Seeing the new technologies in the industry help to ensure we’re staying on top of the latest trends to help our customers be as successful as possible. Next, we’ll be headed to Orlando for the International Builder’s Show, January 9th-11th. We hope to see you there!
