ESC IBS Consortium Minutes 032619

ESC IBS Consortium Minutes from March 26, 2019 Meeting was called to order at 2:03 pm Eastern Time Attendance: Atmos Energy Dan Price Chesapeake Utilities MQ Riding DTE Chris Cole Municipal Gas Assn of GA Chris Stripplehoff National Fuel Marti Sawyer ONE Gas Emily Reh UGI Utilities, Inc Steve Cook Washington Gas Melissa Farrar Meet Our New Product Champions: Barb reminded the group that the new product champions had been elected. It was a close race but the top 3 were Chris Cole, DTE; Steve Cook, UGI and Melissa Farrar from Washington Gas. We can always use extra help, anyone wanting to be involved can volunteer to head up a subcommittee. Kiosk Vendors: Barb noted that there were 11 kiosk vendors in the booth for 2019 and she has already reached out to everyone to see if they planned on returning for 2020. She immediately received a “yes” from 6 vendors. One vendor (RH Peterson) has inquired about taking another kiosk. They have been given a quote for the additional space; we are waiting to hear back. Several noted that it was too early in their budget year for them to make that type of commitment. It was asked how long we leave space open before we try to get other vendors. Barb thought we should wait until at least June. Based on what Tracy Burleson shared it appeared that some did not commit until September. Barb did receive 3 inquiries from companies at the show regarding exhibiting with us for 2020. All who expressed an interest have been contacted; they are aware that the previous exhibitors have top priority for now. The situation will continue to be monitored and updates will be provided as they are available. We need to be careful about the number of vendors that are placed in the booth because traffic flow within the booth is important and keeps the vendors happy. Barb will continue to work with the company who designed the booth for the optimum layout. Vendors who have definitely committed will be billed a deposit to hold their spot. Prize Raffle: Each year, RH Peterson donates a fire table that is raffled off. This brings a great deal of traffic into the booth. There is a coupon located in the registration booklets that registrants receive (NAHB prints these, we supply a file) and there are approximately 1,000 coupons available at the AGA booth for visitors to fill out. Tracy shared that Hanley Wood Marketing had previously handled the graphics work along with sweepstakes management. Barb thought that the invoice from Hanley Wood was on the high side so she will be shopping for bids. If anyone has an-house graphics department that would be able to provide these services let Barb know. Barb will check with Dave if ESC can handle the sweepstakes management portion. Open Discussion: Chris Cole asked if we had a timeline of what needed to be done and when. Barb noted that the majority of the management side of things (badges, rooms for vendors, services needed for set up, etc.) is all handled online through NAHB. Most things aren’t posted until the fall. We are in great shape having 6 committed vendors before the end of March. If anyone has other thoughts or questions, don’t hesitate to call or email. The meeting was adjourned at 2:30 PM.