BTME ABUZZ
BIGGA's show delivered the goods
by Service Dealer Editor, Steve Gibbs
 
Steve Gibbs

BTME this week was certainly abuzz.


Abuzz with packed halls, with greenkeeping professionals in their droves attending educational workshops and with rumours, speculation and discussion on what the show would like look like next year in its changed format.


Firstly, congratulations are in order to BIGGA for putting on an event which there is clearly a great demand and affection for. Certainly on days one and two, the halls felt absolutely packed at peak times. Almost too busy in fact as it was a bit tricky to move about the aisles freely on occasion. Which in a way is a good problem to have - and of course one of the reasons why the association says they need to change up the location within the Harrogate Convention Centre next January.

 


Alongside this move though, one feels they should also look at their registration and show entry system - as that was one of the few true grumbles I heard this week. Visitors were encouraged to pre-register for the show to 'beat the crowds', but upon arrival everyone had to have their QR code they'd been sent scanned, and a badge printed with a different barcode on it.


Between 9 and 10am when a good proportion of visitors were arriving, this was creating queues of frustrated punters who were having to hang around for around 20 minutes to get in - which in the January weather is not ideal. Visitors and exhibitors alike seemed to be affected by this.


At SALTEX those who have pre-registered are sent their entry badge via email to print at home, so when you turn up at the show you just pop it in a lanyard, get beeped by the staff and walk in. A similar system next year when there is apparently going to be just a single entrance for all show visitors would surely be desirable?

 

Vibrant exhibition


Once entry to the show had been gained though it without a doubt felt vibrant and upbeat. Many exhibitors I spoke to were extremely happy with the number and quality of visitors they were welcoming to their stands.


Husqvarna for example, had returned to the exhibition after a considerable number of years away. The company is making excellent progress into the commercial sector with their robotic mowers, battery machinery and Fleet Services offerings and saw BTME as an opportunity to make valuable contacts in the golf world. Kevin Ashmore, UK Commercial Landscape & Groundcare Manager told me at the start of Day 2 that they'd had a good mix of people coming on to their stand, all interested in the benefits which this new technology could offer their professional businesses.

 

L-R: Husqvarna's Kevin Ashmore, James Walker, Graham Brown and Gary Philpott

 

Having only recently formed at the backend of 2017, Iseki UK and Ireland make their debut with a small stand - which seemed constantly busy. Product and Marketing manager Richard Tyrell told me that at the moment they are sticking with the established dealer network they have inherited from Ransomes - but that they would be looking to expand in time. He said he was very encouraged by the level of loyalty to the brand he'd heard during the show.

 

L-R: John Clifford and Richard Tyrell on the Iseki UK & Ireland stand


Kubota were showcasing new groundscare products including a new zero turn mower and compact tractors. Product manager Tim Yates said that even though the company has been making serious in-roads into the agricultural sector in recent times, groundscare is still the heart of the company. He said what the recent developments in their agricultural machinery had allowed them to do though, was to bring across some of that cutting edge technology which the market demanded, into the commercial sector.

 

Kubota's Tim Yates

 

The future

 

So if it ain't broke, don't fix it? Well not quite.


BIGGA have said that the show this year sold out to exhibitors back in September and they had a waiting of list of companies wanting to pay for stands which they had to turn down. So it's only natural that they would want to find more space to accommodate this - hence changing the layout within the convention centre. And as previously mentioned the halls used this year were a tad overcrowded, with no real space for visitors to relax.


It's this 'visitor experience' which BIGGA are stressing they want to improve. At the conclusion of the show yesterday BIGGA Chief Executive Jim Croxton said of next year's show, "It’s going to be more pleasant, people are going to stay longer around the halls, take a break, get some food and drink, see some innovations and have a look at some of the things we offer our members as well."


However, I did hear a few reservations from exhibitors about the changes being made - some of which were to do with logistics. A couple of the new halls to be used are located upstairs in the convention centre - which of course presents difficulties in getting machinery up on to stands. Concerns were also expressed about ceiling height in some of the rooms with exhibitors worried that stands which they already own might not fit in.


BIGGA were keen to point out that the new configuration of halls would have a natural flow, but I heard people concerned that some had the potential to become possible ghost towns - the way that Hall Q used to (which is one of the halls coming back into operation). There was a rumour going around that to combat this the big draw machinery boys would be split up and dotted around the exhibition to make sure people visited every corner. Which is good for the show, but maybe those manufactures like being grouped together as they currently are in Hall M?


The biggest concern I think exhibitors have though, was that it seemed they wouldn't immediately be sure where exactly their stand would be located next year. Rather they would be putting in a request which the organising team would then do their best to accommodate. I'm sure BIGGA will be working hard with their customers to make sure they are satisfied, but concerns were clearly held. One would expect a period of rigorous negotiation will be commencing straight away.


Change itself is of course often held with suspicion. The unknown is feared, especially when what we've had is held in such esteem. Next January will be a true litmus test for the show. I'm sure it can't come around quick enough for BIGGA so they can prove they are able deliver on their promise of an improved visitor experience - whilst at the same time making it work for their commercial partners.


Who let's not forget, are utterly vital to its continued success.

 

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In this issue
EDITOR'S BLOG
BTME ABUZZ
NEWS
TALLIS AMOS GROUP TAKES ON BS MOWERS
SURGE IN DECEMBER TRACTOR REGISTRATIONS
BLEC MAKE NEW DEALER APPOINTMENT
SCAMBLERS APPOINT NEW GRASSHOPPER DEALER
R T MACHINERY JOINS VENTRAC DEALER NETWORK
KRAMP UK MAKE APPOINTMENT
SALTEX VISITOR PROFILE REVEALED
ISEKI UK & IRELAND SIGN WITH HITACHI CAPITAL
JOHN DEERE RENEWS PARTNERSHIP
NFU MEMBERS OFFERED SUZUKI DISCOUNT
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T H WHITE
BAGMA
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