Doncaster ME Show and Warco.

JasonB

It's difficult to get a positive response over the phone.

I spoke to Warco this morning, I had not seen this thread but had heard the rumour they would not be at Doncaster, and they confirmed they would not be there.

Their main reason was cost and the fact that last years Doncaster show just did not have the same vibe as the previous years Harrogate shows. They also said that at Harrogate there were a lot of people from the North East visiting the stand but not the same numbers at Doncaster.

I would be interested in the view of people here who have to both the Doncaster show and the Harrogate one and how they compared?

I also spent a couple of grand on a Warco mill without seeing it in the flesh

Edited By petro1head on 13/03/2017 18:45:27

As I have already said on a parallel posting, Harrogate far better than Doncaster. I can easily see Roger Warren's point about the potential for WARCO at these shows. Same applied (unfortunately) at the Sandown venue on a Sunday.

Edited By KWIL on 13/03/2017 19:34:56

Irrespective of the Harrogate v Doncaster argument, long , short is if they hadn't moved to Doncaster there would have been no show.

End of story.

Harrogate doubled the hall rent for a smaller hall. The ME show wasn't the only ones to bail out last year, approximately 10 or 12 other shows either pulled out or moved venue.

So a bit short sighted of the Harrogate venue

It depend how many shows they have. If they now have half as many shows but charge them twice as much, they make a hefty saving on staff...

Neil

I also went to the last Harrogate show and the first Doncaster show.

To say one show was better than the other in just that open context isnt really correct. There are quite a few different reasons that people wish to attend the shows. What are they going for? In no order:

Model Steam engines, traction engines, locos, stationary engines etc, New machinery and equipment. New and used tooling, new technolgy items, raw materials, fittings, fixings, kits, castings etc. Club exhibitions, information, meet builders, examine finishing of item and the list goes on and is exhaustive.

What makes it "better" over another show is how much is there which relates to those particular interests of the visitor.

To someone really looking at comparing new machinery equipment, tooling etc then Warco would be sorely missed and the show may well be deemed not as good.

To somebody going for say, the model locos then it likely wont make a difference or may be a tad better if more club exhibits take their place.

The last Harrogate & first Doncaster for me too, my impression was that there were better vibes at the Harrogate show, hustling between the old farts with backpacks on, ( Yeh include me in that category at display stands, vendor stands etc was a much better ambience, to me. Doncaster seemed to have something lacking, can't put a finger on it, just ' it' wasn't quite there, plus the extra time getting there. Personal preferences I suppose.

George.

Edited By John Stevenson on 14/03/2017 14:27:39

I only started this model engineering lark twelve months ago and only managed Bristol and Brooklands last year due to holidays. After a working lifetime of going to machine tool shows here and abroad, which used to cover many acres of exhibition space, it is a little underwhelming going to these shows. But all the shows are reducing in size due to high costs and without support from the enthusiasts they will disappear. I shall have a quick visit to the Warwickshire Exhibition Centre this weekend to see what is there, then the NEC next week for photography. Even the NEC exhibitions are not what they were, very few hardware sellers. To get a worthwhile exhibition for some we would have to get most of the UK model engineering companies involved and that ain't gona happen, so accept and support what we have.

Out of interest where else are there shows like the one at Doncaster?

Don't forget Brooklands alternate years September

However there are plenty shows in the midlands to cover people coming from the south and there was only one show in the North which would also have been better for the Scottish lads.

I don't think anyone is bitching

Edited By petro1head on 14/03/2017 16:40:13

Sad about warco not being at Doncaster, was keen on looking over their milling machines

Will have to look elsewhere now bad business idea by warco

Steve

Edited By Steve Ambler 1 on 25/04/2017 22:47:06

Why not try the Spalding show now in its fourth year, what a really pleasant atmosphere small but enjoyable

long may it continue and grow

Sorry just accept the world is changing.

10 - 15 years ago when shows were at their peak we didn't have online internet sales.

Now we have and companies have to move with the times or die.

When a company is at a show they sell a small amount to the through the door punters, majority are tyre kickers just looking.

However whilst they are at the show they are loosing sales to the rest of the country and also overseas sales which far, far outweighs anything they sell at the show. In fact deducting the cost of getting to the show and standing it they are very lucky to even break even so the whole show on paper is a dead loss.

This is why we are seeing the larger traders not doing the shows, it's the modern way of internet trading.

People come up with all weird and wonderful ideas of why not take just so and so to the show but it all boils down to cost and time. They are not idiots, they know their trade and figures.

All the discussion comparing shows is depressing, particularly when comparing with shows in the past. General discussions with my friends tend to go along the lines of well it wasn't as good as last year and do you remember the old shows at Wembley etc. However when someone asks did you enjoy the day the answer is nearly always "yes I had a lovely time" Maybe that's the question we should really be asking ourselves.

So long as I found something worth looking at that makes me think 'Im glad I saw that' and I've spent a day with my mates I'm happy even if it wasn't as good as last time.

regards Martin

PS see you at Doncaster

You forgot the Spalding Show (last week end), which has grown over the last four years!

Can fully understand how the traders view shows, preparation, disruption to normal activities, (before and after), and the attached costs.

Have any of you ever organised a stand at a Show for your Club?

If so, you'll know about the time to plan / prepare, organise exhibits and stewards, collate YOUR exhibits, set up the stand, keep an eye on things during the show, and then clear the stand, and finally put away your stuff afterwards.

The physical work started on Thursday, and ended on Tuesday morning for a two day show. As a local Show it involved nearly 200 miles in my vehicle. For club members exhibiting, it spread over three days.

So for Warco, much as we miss their presence, (and ability to by "over the counter" at the Show) preparing, travelling to and from Surrey, and then reversing the process after three days, plus stand and staff costs, must be balanced against how much profit is actually going to be made at the Show. And the same must apply to other traders. The cost has to be covered somehow; whether in the Sales budget, or as an overhead. Either way, eventually those costs have to be recovered by profit on the products, or thge Company will eventually go bankrupt.

For Model Engineering Shows to continue, income from trade presence is vital, unless we are all prepared to pay a LOT more for tickets to see just the work of members of other clubs.

Venue owners and show organisers cannot afford to price themselves out of the market, for either traders or visitors, or there will be any shows.

Howard