The Digital Show pre-registrations are up on last year and the show itself will be as as big as the 2012 event, according to IDEA president, James Murray.
‘The objective in the past has been to get 17 to 20,000 attendees along and we will be happy to get towards that,’ he told Photo Counter. ‘Pre-registrations are slightly up on last year.’
He added that the organisers were considering waiving the $20 entrance fee for those who don’t pre-register. This would the reduce congestion around the entrance which had been a feature of previous years’ events.
Mr Murray said that there had been great support from Elizabeth Street retailers, with prominent window displays, and promotion in catalogues and print advertising for The Digital Show.
‘The guys from Elizabeth Street will gain most from the show,’ he noted. He said the move to September put The Digital Show ‘on the cusp of Christmas trading’.
Although there will be fewer small exhibitors this year, in terms of floor space the show took up six bays at the Melbourne exhibition centre. ‘My understanding is that is the same size as last year.’ said Mr Murray. (Click here for floor plan.)
He said major brands had take equal or in some cases larger spaces, with Blond Robot, distributor of GoPro cameras, taking a significantly larger area.
Sennheiser, which will featuring microphones for DSLR videography, is a new exhibitor along with Michaels, which will be featuring the Op/Tech USA range of camera straps and accessories it distributes.
Mr Murray also noted that there are two or three new education-oriented exhibitors and ‘the workshops will be better than anything seen before’, featuring internationally-renowned photographers as well as local experts and master photographers. (Click here for program.)
‘All this is designed to excite the consumer, and that will feed into retail.’
The Digital Show will be held simultaneously with the adjacent Art & Frame 2013 show. At least one regular Digital Show exhibitor, Giclee Media Supplies, has chosen to set up its stand in the Art & Frame exhibition. The overlap between the framing industry, photo retailing and professional photographers is expanding, and show organisers are encouraging photo retailers and pro photographers to have a look at what’s available to offer their customers in the area of image presentation.
From a financial viewpoint, Mr Murray said that IDEA would ‘be in the black’ following The 2013 Digital Show. He flagged a meeting of IDEA members following the show to plot a future course for the organisation.
Since the abrupt departure of IDEA CEO Katherine Singson in April, IDEA board members have been sharing the organisational load, with Robert Gatto (Kayell, IDEA VP Professional) playing the role of floor manager, with assistance from IDEA office manager, Eve Philips, while Marc Raddatt (Olympus, IDEA VP Consumer) was handling marketing, with James Murray (Nikon) in a coordinating role.
Although the IDEA board has assumed extra workload as a part-time show organising team, Mr Murray noted that ‘if we don’t have a show, it makes what we do in our day jobs that much harder.’
The Media Publishing-produced show guide will be available in eBook format in the next day or so from The Digital Show or Photo Review website. (Click here for ‘hot off the press’ access.)
It will be readable on smartphones and tablets, and both Sony and Adobe offer free software for reading an eBook on a PC or Mac.
The Digital Show website also states a catalogue in PDF form will be ‘available soon’.
Photo Counter will present an extended ‘preview issue’ for The Digital Show next Wednesday, September 11. Exhibitors who wish to contribute can send material to keiths@photocounter.com.au.
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