All photos courtesy Ivan Piedra Photography/AGNYC Productions/SpotMyPhotos
The tradeshow floor at Catersource + The Special Event, held in Austin, TX this past February 12–15, was an exciting place, bustling with products, services, people, education sessions, and competitions.
Exhibitor Booths
Each year, attendees can look forward to certain eye-catching booths, like the stilted, extravagant costumed atmosphere talent of Pzazz Productions and the murals of Paintillio. This year, there were other attention-grabbing booth features as well, like the neon cowboys of Champagne Creative Group (turn to page 104 to see them in action at the Opening Night Party), cowboy hat airbrushing of AGNYC Productions, and logoed cake pops of Tripleseat.
Tablescape Competition
The annual Tablescape Competition drew a crowd and got the creative juices flowing on the tradeshow floor. Sixty participants broke into teams, received a design prompt (following the formula of a celebrity client and an event scenario), and had limited time to design and build their tables. The competition was co-chaired and judged by Michelle Howard (Flora Couture), Colton Staver (The JDK Group), and Matthew Crowe (Hilton Norfolk The Main), and also judged by Laura Schwartz (Laura Schwartz Live) and Ron Ben-Israel (Ron Ben-Israel Cakes). All the tables were colorful, resourceful, and a delight to behold!
Fast Chats
New this year, the Ignite Stages on the tradeshow floor featured 30-minute interactive Fast Chats, where attendees could discuss targeted topics with industry experts. With headsets and inside inflatable “igloos,” each session was up close and personal, offering a greater opportunity to understand and learn a variety of topics, from sustainability to technology to marketing to operations.
Events
There were several events happening on the floor throughout the week, as well including a happy hour, a morning Brunch & Bubbly, and booth awards, which honored exhibitors for different elements of their booths. No matter where attendees went, there was always something to experience!
With so much to do and see, the tradeshow floor at Catersource + The Special Event is an opportunity that can’t be missed. Make sure to be in the middle of the action next year, when Catersource + The Special Event heads to Fort Lauderdale, FL, from February 24–27. Until next year!
To speak at Catersource + The Special Event, click here.
