By All Indications, CRA’s March 13-15, 2012 Rental Rally Tradeshow Was a Win for Vendors and Attendees

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More than 130 booths and 229 attendees, the beautiful southern California weather held out for the outdoor demo and digging areas, well-attended seminars and party round tables, and a great keynote speaker rounding out the event -- all added up to a successful Rental Rally Tradeshow for the California Rental Association.

CRA’s RV Campout was held in conjunction with the tradeshow, with RV camping available at the show site, the Fairplex in Pomona. Twelve RVs and motor homes of many sizes and shapes attended the campout.  A vendor barbecue held during the show's set up, courtesy of master chef Bob Phares, was appreciated by all till not a crumb was left. The evening potluck on March 12 was fun for the RVers and others in attendance.

Other tradeshow vendors and attendees stayed at the onsite Fairplex Sheraton Hotel, which was sold out for the evenings of March 13 and 14. Tuesday’s opening Cocktail Party and Awards Ceremony, held at the National Hot Rod Museum, also on the Fairplex grounds, had 200+ in attendance. Linda Bradley, former CRA board member and rental company owner, was presented with the annual W.E. "Bud" Loeber Friendship Award in honor of the late Bud Loeber, a former CRA official known for his helpful attitude, humor and kind personality. James Jenkins, of Jenkins Insurance Group, was awarded the James Gartland Award, named for the founder of RER Magazine and given annually to a rental person or service provider in recognition of their contribution to the rental industry. The Gartland Award was presented by Michael Roth, editor of RER. Both awards were well deserved by their recipients, who are both known for their tireless contributions to CRA. The attendance at Wednesday’s banquet and raffle, held at the Pomona Valley Mining Company, exceeded expectations with more than 225 people present.

The tradeshow featured well-received seminars and party round table discussions.  Seminars included a "Commercial Vehicle Requirements" presentation by a CHP officer from the Commercial Vehicle unit and a "Theft Prevention Seminar" by Lou Koven, with Southern California Crime Prevention, and Gabe Marquez of the CHP Special Crime Investigation unit. Party round tables discussed the topics of "Web & Marketing" with David Dworshack and Tom Mantyla and "Operational Topics" -- tent permits, lighting, re-rents, delivery and pickup, setup and knock-down, GPS systems, and more, with Patricia Sarris and Steve Garcia.

Keynote speaker John Tillison spoke of being "blindsided" in business, and what it takes to continue in business in an inspirational, comical and challenging way.

Go to www.calrental.org to see a complete listing of the show vendors!

Comments from Rick Beal, Tradeshow Exhibitor:

This past week we had the CRA Show. Though it was not profitable in the short term, it was definitively worthwhile for me. If I can get more of my manufacturers with booths, and we can get more of the independent rental stores to come, it could be profitable too. Those that came tried to buy at least a little from everyone this week, but the best part is they will continue to buy from these suppliers throughout the entire year, which will lead to great profits.

I would like to thank the members for all their support. They not only bought what they could from those vendors with booths, they helped us load and unload with forklifts and provided manual labor, not just employees either -- owners were hauling equipment back and forth too... talk about supporting your vendors! It was great seeing you all, thanks for your support!

I want to thank the manufacturers we represent, too, for supporting the show. Particularly Fortress Scaffolding for buying their own booth next to Marion Beal Sales; Marion Beal Sales for getting me in and bringing in manufacturers that we share as distributor and rep, like General Wire Drain Cleaners, Maxim Tillers, and New Haven Moving Equipment. Harper Air Tool (one of my top lines) also sent merchandise for display.

WCS Distributing did a fantastic job with two inside booths and an outside space, supplying manpower for both inside and out. Great job! Naturally their Tanaka and Powerhouse, and Yamakoyo merchandise displayed were some of my top movers at the show.

I want to thank Arlen, Pam, & Bruce too. They had the Excavation Supply, MBW, and Ground Hog lines on display. I'm helping Arlen with these three in L.A., Orange, Ventura, and Santa Barbara Counties.

We had nine booths altogether, so it was a great show all the way around!