Last week saw another busy week of international sport on our shores with our top turf professionals having their work cut out, battling the elements. England saw the third Ashes Test against Australia at Old Trafford washed out yesterday, and Brian Harman overcome the harsh weather to win the British Open Golf Tournament at Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

Also last week, I was hoping to attend the SAGE show at the Three Counties Showground, Malvern. However, due to unforeseen circumstances I was not able to attend the show. After talking to a number of exhibitors though, it would seem the show yet again was a huge disappointment for the those who attended the two day event.
 

SAGE 2023

Now into its third year, there were high expectations of the show being busier than previously. 

From several people I spoke to, they were all saying the same thing - for the concept of the show, an outdoor event that enables exhibitors to demonstrate their wares, the venue and setting was perfect, it’s just the fact that very few grounds professionals bother turning up where it fails. SAGE is one of several amenity sector and ag shows that now fill the calendar year with the established shows, Saltex and BTME, now joined by GroundsFest, all trying to sway industry professionals to attend.

It will be interesting to see how this year’s new kid on the block at the Warwickshire showground, scheduled for September, will fare and whether they attract a strong footfall?

Low attendances

We have seen over the last few years a demise in the number of people attending our industry shows. Last time out, BIGGA confirmed it had pre-registration figures of 4,930 attendees for the 2023 show. This number includes 900 registrations from exhibitors themselves, who play a vital role in the success of the event.

The same could be said for the GMA’s show. It was reported in 2022 that over 8,300 attendees from across the UK and over 50 countries came through the doors over the two-day event at Birmingham NEC, signaling a return to pre-pandemic levels.

Saltex 2022

For me though, these are fairly low attendance figures when you take into account the number of people who work in this diverse industry. If you take grounds professionals and volunteers, the GMA conducted a survey that stated there were around 20,000 turf professionals working across all sports and amenity sites.

If you were to add in agricultural workers and gardeners, I am sure we would be seeing this figure double. So we probably have at least 40,000 people working in our turf / ag related industries, if not more. I believe we more than likely have over 100,000 working or involved in our industry. 

I firmly believe we need to look at why these people are not attending trade shows. We seem to be missing a trick somewhere?

For me it is now time we stopped working in isolation and startes building bridges amongst all the trade industry bodies. If we are serious in attracting new blood into the industry, we all need to come together to show what a wonderful industry we work in. We need to have an annual show that encompasses all aspects of this industry. 

We need to see the likes of the RHS, Landscape Institute, BAGMA, AEA, GMA, BIGGA, R&A, the major sports governing bodies and the major manufacturers should all come together to deliver an annual show that acts as an international showcase for the skills, dedication and complexity of producing a living environment that millions of people enjoy on a daily basis. 

Our industry has been fragmented for well over the 50 years for which I have been involved in it. Having started as a parks apprentice for Birmingham City Council in 1972 and holding a number of responsible roles, combined with the fact I have reported on this ever changing industry as an editor of several trade magazines, I feel I’m in a position to say it is time we finally came together to ensure the future of the industry. 

We have a serious recruitment problem facing our industry, with low pay and poor working conditions preventing people wanting to come into the industry.

While I admire many who have been trying to address these problems for many years, until we finally come together and have a single goal in raising the profile of the industry and have some national campaigns to attract new blood into the industry and set up a national apprenticeship scheme that sees well over 5,000 youngsters a year enter the industry, I fear we shall continue to be a poor relation compared to other professions.

Lord's Cricket Ground

Having a single show representing all of the above organisations would be a good starting point. I clearly understand that both the GMA and BIGGA rely on the income they generate from running these annual shows. However, I am sure there would be more money for everyone if we invested in one single show.

It is now time to bring other partners into the frame and look at delivering a show that ticks a lot of boxes and rewards us all.  Having a show that attracts 15,000-20,000 people would make a huge difference. It would clearly raise the profile of all those who work in the industry and in time would hopefully encourage new blood to take up the reins to ensure the future of our landscape / sports turf industry.