2016 Golf Industry Show a success

External sourcein Industry News

GIS TurfNet
Sunshine and success at the 2016 Golf Industry Show reports Golf Business News

The beautiful California weather didn't stop attendees of this year's event from taking advantage of the wealth of education opportunities and expansive trade show offerings.

The 2016 Golf Industry Show saw a rise in all measures, including total attendance at 12,600 and qualified buyer attendance at 6,000. During the trade show, attendees were able to view the latest golf facility solutions and interact with over 550 exhibitors spanning 250,000 net square feet of exhibit space at the San Diego Convention Center.

"This is my first show in six years, and I am just walking around like a kid in a candy store," said Austin Anderson, 34, general manager and golf course superintendent at Grand Elk Golf Club in Grandby, Colo., and vice president of the Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendents Association. "It has changed so much since my last show, and all for the better."

"The Golf Industry Show has a bigger international presence than the PGA Show, and that is beneficial," said Joey Panozzo, vice president of sales in North America for Garia Inc., a 10-year-old Denmark company and maker of luxury golf cars and utility vehicles. "This is a significant investment, but a worthwhile one for us. We will be back, I guarantee you. We are making sales and finding new dealers."

Full report HERE

Meanwhile, TurfNet suggests a mixed bag of results for GIIS

This year's Golf Industry Show certainly looked bigger in terms of square footage, and it seemed larger for those tasked with going back and forth throughout the long and slender San Diego Convention Center like a pinball. Undoubtedly there was more than one media type whose fitness tracker was buzzing early in the day as the 10,000-step plateau was reached - and crossed.

But how does the show compare with last year's, or the last time it was in Southern California in 2013? The numbers from San Diego predictably offer a mixed bag of results, some of which offer hope, some of which do not.

A total of 12,600 people attended this year's show, including roughly 6,000 qualified buyers, according to GCSAA. This year's overall attendance was up by 200 and there were 400 more qualified buyers this year than last. That attendance number trails the 2013 San Diego show's 13,192 attendees and 6,018 qualified buyers.

Full report HERE

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