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Contact: Daniel Hagan
Phone: 215-953-3773
Email: dhagan@sms-team.com

Attendance Up by 14.5% at Second Annual ASI Show Philadelphia
Momentum Growing for 2007 Show with Earlier Dates Announced

TREVOSE, PA — (June 21, 2006) —The second annual ASI Show Philadelphia, May 23-25 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, delivered 1973 distributors (a 14.5% increase in attendance from 2005) and 460 suppliers (featuring over 200 not found at other industry shows in the Northeast). ASI Philadelphia included the largest education conference in the Northeast — with over 55 sessions and 90 hours of education — two action-packed exhibit days, an exclusive tour of ASI’s membership headquarters and thousands of distributors and suppliers.
           
The ASI Show Philadelphia welcomed distributors from the Northeast and across the country (attendees came from 38 different states) as well as distributors from all over the world — all eager to see new and innovative products and services. Matt Miles of FASTSIGNS International, Inc., asi/395000, noted, “I find The ASI Shows to always be valuable in growing our business. I think ASI is an excellent host for these shows and Philadelphia was one of the best. I especially enjoyed Rudy Giuliani’s speech. I will definitely be here next year, making deals.” Gregg A. Emmer from Kaeser & Blair, Inc., asi/238600, shared, “ASI does a first rate job presenting industry tradeshows. From the keynote speakers to the excellent and happy ‘red hat’ squad — this was a fine tradeshow to attend.” Bob Sherman from ColorGraphix, LLC, asi/164815, said, “As a first-time attendee of The ASI Show, I thought it was a fabulous experience and a very well run event. I never felt crowded or rushed as I made my way through the many exhibits. The event was everything I expected and more. See you next year.”
 
Suppliers were also very pleased with this year’s ASI Show Philadelphia. “We at American Ad Bag found The ASI Show Philadelphia to be very successful,” said Blaine Wiltey of American Ad Bag, asi/35290. “We handed out nearly 800 catalogs along with tradeshow bags and gathered numerous leads. The earlier dates for 2007 (May 3-5) should benefit both suppliers and distributors; being they are away from other industry shows and before the Memorial Day weekend.” Mason Lui of Super Cap USA, Inc., asi/ 90212, added, “Thanks ASI! We had a great show and will be back next year!” And, Marc Giroux from Spector Image, asi/88660, shared, “Booth traffic was very, very good. We saw many quality distributors who took the time to look at our products and discuss their clients’ needs. ASI Philadelphia was a very positive experience for us.”

ASI Show President Matthew Cohn had this to say about The ASI Show Philadelphia, “With the show floor nearly doubling in size, the biggest challenge we faced for this year’s event was growing distributor traffic to keep up with the outstanding supplier growth — especially with the conflict with the Memorial Day holiday. The attendance growth we experienced (a 14.5% increase) is the most important sign regarding the future success of the show for exhibitors. We are excited that we were able to move next year’s show three weeks earlier (May 3-5, 2007), thus avoiding Memorial Day. We are already working to strengthen the ratio of distributors to suppliers, reformat the show floor layout and make the show even more cost-effective for exhibitors.”
 
Cohn went on to say, “We have already received considerable positive feedback from both distributors and suppliers about the earlier show dates for 2007. In fact, 89% of distributors who didn’t attend the show this year have indicated that they like the new dates and are more likely to attend in 2007. I’m confident that the earlier dates will enable us to significantly grow our attendance.”
          

Education Conference Earns Honors in Philly
The Education Conference, sponsored by Fields Manufacturing, asi/54100, provided dozens of training seminars — many of them free — to hundreds of distributors and suppliers throughout the day on Tuesday, May 23. Education Day was highlighted by the Rick Barrera Lunch & Learn presentation, sponsored by SHEPENCO/Shelbyville Pencil, asi/86850, “Over Promise & Over Deliver: The Secrets of Unshakable Customer Loyalty.” Another popular session for ASI Show-goers was a free full-day seminar entitled, “Top Buyers of Promotional Products & How to Sell to Them.” In this workshop, distributors heard from market specialists who shared their secrets to booming sales in nine multi-billion-dollar markets, including the school, financial, hospitality, government and healthcare markets.
 
On Education Day, ASI also hosted its second annual Open House at ASI headquarters in Trevose, Pennsylvania. Upon arrival, ASI President Tim Andrews welcomed attendees and gave a background of ASI as well as his insights on the dynamics of the industry, ASI’s role in it and some exciting enhancements to ASI’s products. William D. Smith, Jr. from Brown & Bigelow, asi/148500, participated in the tour and said, "The ASI Open House was a unique opportunity to acquire a well-rounded understanding of the resources, products and services ASI offers. The morning I spent in Trevose was one of the highlights of the show! I recommend every supplier and distributor set aside time next year to participate in the ASI Open House."
 
The learning continued on Wednesday and Thursday and included free one-hour education Power Sessions that took place on the show floor. Jill Rothstein from Just Write, asi/237945, had this to say about The ASI Show education, “I’ve been incredibly impressed with the education workshops. I feel that, hands down, ASI has the best educational workshops of any show I’ve been to, and I’ve been in the industry for about 11 years. They’ve been outstanding, and I called people I know in the business and told them they have to come. It’s absolutely well worth the time.”
 
The last day of the show, Thursday, May 25, featured the highly anticipated Rudy Giuliani keynote presentation. A standing-room-only audience enjoyed this special opportunity to see Rudy Giuliani and learned important, proven lessons on effective leadership and how to apply these strategies to business for maximum effectiveness.   
 
“The Giuliani keynote was absolutely outstanding,” said Roger Pawley from Alliance Mercantile, asi/34343. “I thank ASI for bringing a person of his stature here. The opportunity to listen to him was fabulous. It was an excellent experience.” Teri Vigeant from Little Bytes Awards and Gifts, asi/254860, added, “I thought he was amazing and gave us a lot of insight on leadership and how to focus. It was just a real thrill to see him.”
 

Fun Networking in the City of Brotherly Love
Over 500 party-goers enjoyed The ASI Show Gala Celebration at the historic Franklin Institute on Wednesday, May 24. The Gala offered attendees and exhibitors the perfect opportunity to meet off the show floor for an evening of relaxation and networking while enjoying a scrumptious dinner buffet, open bar, museum exhibits, a live band and much more! John Shegta from Proforma, asi/300094, was like most attendees in sharing his unbridled excitement of the ASI Gala Celebration, “What a great ending to a marvelous day. We really love The Franklin Institute. We are enjoying great food, exciting exhibits while relaxing among friends.”
 
Networking events were held every day of the show and included the ASI Open House, Welcome to Philadelphia Reception, Philadelphia Freedom Celebration, Family Business Reception and Closing Celebration.

Future 2006 Shows
The ASI Show Philadelphia was the fourth of five 2006 ASI Shows, with the remaining ASI Show in Chicago, July 11-13 at the McCormick Place Convention Center. The ASI Show Chicago is the largest industry show in the summer and the biggest show to hit the Midwest.
 
The ASI Show will return to Philadelphia next year on May 3-5, 2007 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Additional 2007 ASI Shows include Orlando, January 18-20, at the Orange County Convention Center; Dallas, February 7-9, at the Dallas Convention Center; Las Vegas, March 19-21, at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Chicago, July 10-12, at McCormick Place