Get ready for the next chapter for our industry’s trade show.

by Chuck Bowen

Equip Exposition is the experience of the year for the landscape, outdoor living, and equipment industry.

The trade show (formerly known as GIE+EXPO) is the industry’s proving ground—the one event with 30 acres outside where you can test before you invest in new products, innovations, and technologies for your business.

And it’s the best place to connect with experts who make and sell those products—people with the knowledge to take your business to the next level.

We can’t wait to show you what’s new for 2022.

We’ve added several new features to enhance your experience in Louisville this October. The show opens Tuesday, Oct. 18, with a free Welcome Reception at Louisville Slugger Field. Dealers and landscapers can get onto the show floor earlier on Wednesday, and we’ve expanded the Outdoor Demo Yard, adding nearly eight more acres and an extra day outside.

We’re also making the show easier to navigate. An express pickup line for attendees who are pre-registered on Wednesday at the KEC will allow them to scan their registration barcodes and quickly print badges. Kiosks in the South Wing lobbies will speed all attendees through barcode scanning and badge printing. We’ll have express badge pickup at the airport, and select hotels starting on Tuesday, getting you through the door and on the floor faster.

We have new education partners this year, bringing insight and perspective from across the industry to panels, discussions, and seminars on the most important topics facing the business today.

Landscaper education partners at this year’s trade show include Landscape Management magazine, the Professional Grounds Management Society, the Irrigation Association, the Pool and Hot Tub Alliance, the Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals, and the Women’s Tree Climbing Workshop and Davy Tree.

Dealer and retailer education partners include Bob Clements International, the Equipment & Engine Training Council, and Power Equipment Trade magazine.

In 2019, the trade show was named the sixth largest in the country, and it’s been posting records in attendance and booth sales for years. That means Expo has been working, and we’re not going to try to fix something that isn’t broken. Equip Expo is still the only trade show where the entire industry gathers to share knowledge, innovations, and trends. It’s still a complete experience, offering cutting-edge education, unparalleled networking, and hands-on demo opportunities with the most diverse and latest technologies and products.

At its heart, Equip Expo is an experience. Our classroom isn’t a sterile hotel ballroom. It’s 30 acres of contractors and dealers using equipment—moving earth, cutting grass, and driving over obstacles. It’s a crew rigging up and cutting in a real 60-foot sugar maple set in the world’s largest Christmas tree stand. And it’s tens of thousands of your colleagues from around the world sharing solutions to the problems you’re facing in your business today.

Ultimately, Equip Expo remains the best place to identify, navigate, and harness change to keep your business relevant and competitive. Spend four days in Louisville this October, and you’ll leave smarter and better equipped to take on challenges and opportunities you’re facing.

The author is Vice President, Communications, Member Relations, and Education Programming.