And that marks the end of NAMM 2013. Special thanks goes out to these individuals who helped with the coverage this year:
- The Lippin Group
- Steven Borts / ET7
- Undocument
- Charlene Gibbs
- Sammy Rothman
Global Music and Sound Industry Finds Success at the 2013 NAMM Show
The business of making music takes center stage, as the number and variety of buyers increase from
Anaheim, CA
(January 28, 2013) – When the business is music, it’s a fine line
between good times and work. Produced by the National Association of
Music Merchants (NAMM), the NAMM Show provided the most effective
platform across four jam-packed days filled with new product debuts,
networking, and educational opportunities set to the
soundtrack of live music and conversation among friends old and new.
From January 24-27, every aspect of the music instrument and products
industry including retailers, corporate buyers, artists and sound and
lighting professionals did business with nearly
5000 unique brands in Anaheim, CA.
“Our
industry, like many others, is in the midst of rapid change,” said Joe
Lamond, president and CEO, NAMM. “And I believe NAMM Members who came to
Anaheim to see
the latest product innovations, attend NAMM University sessions, and
network with friends and peers will be uniquely positioned to take
advantage of the business opportunities in the year ahead.”
Based
on member feedback, NAMM made a concerted effort to increase buyer
(blue) badges and decrease guest (yellow) badges to create the most
business-friendly event
in years. Buyers increased 4 percent over 2012, while non-industry
guests decreased 16 percent. The important increase in buyers was
attributed to more retail music stores, corporate buyers including
houses of worship, live event venues and touring professionals,
casinos, and studios sending buyers to shop the NAMM Show. The mix of
industry professionals resulted in an incredibly business-focused, yet
vibrant show made up of 93,908 total registrants.
“We
were approached by many potential new business partners, so it became
an even broader type of business show,” said Tony Moscal, general
manager of business development
for Peavey. “We’re glad to see that NAMM’s provided with a full
representation of an industry business show in addition to traditional
retailers. This has been one of the most exciting, rewarding show’s that
I’ve been involved with since my first NAMM Show
in 1981.”
"I
attend for the latest, greatest and best our industry has to offer.
This show was rich with industry trends, the latest in gear and top
notch sessions at the Idea
Center,” said Billy Cuthrell, owner of Progressive Music Center in North Carolina. “I
consider my time at NAMM a major part of my business success throughout the year."
For
the first time, a Mayor led the NAMM Show. NAMM president and CEO Joe
Lamond proclaimed world-renowned musician and humanitarian Stevie
Wonder as Mayor of the NAMM Show with a lifetime, all-access badge to
NAMM. "My goal is before it's my time, I hope to be able to make music
accessible to everybody, children and adults,” said His Honor (Wonder).
"It's a whole new world of music and instrument
discovery at the show every year.” Wonder, one of hundreds of major
artists at the NAMM Show, walked the show trying out new products and
meeting with friends.
While
live music played and celebrities visited, the resounding sentiment on
the show floor was that the industry was getting down to business.
"Roland Corporation
U.S. is very pleased with the 2013 NAMM Show and activity on our new
booth and location,” Kim Nunney, president of Roland. “Traffic was
steady throughout the show and dealers responded very positively to our
new products, Content Checkpoints and media stage.
A great show, we're looking forward to a strong 2013."
NEW FEATURES
The
opening of the 2013 NAMM Show marked not only the start of the world’s
premier gathering for the music instrument
and product industry, but also the debut of the Anaheim Convention
Center’s new outdoor venue, The Anaheim Grand Plaza. The Grand Plaza
features 100,000 square feet of outdoor meeting and event space, and
during the NAMM Show an outdoor stage for live performances.
NAMM
Show-goers enjoyed a series of spectacular live performances all day,
every day throughout the four-day show. Tower of Power, The
Living Legends Jam (with band members from The Eagles, Black Sabbath,
and Fleetwood Mac, among others), and CTA (California Transit Authority)
rocked the Grand Plaza hard and gave the energetic nighttime crowds
plenty of authentic rock and roll.
“There’s
great talent with Tower of Power and a community feeling [on the Grand
Plaza]. It’s great to wind down out here after the day, while enjoying
some music with good friends
and business partners,” said Jerry Loos, owner, Jerry Loos Guitar
Training, Westerville, OH.
The
industry quickly adapted to the new show perimeter that reached the
convention center’s exterior walls, effectively
adding to the show’s footprint. By moving registration to the hotels,
NAMM created an easier to navigate show with fewer ID checks.
NEW BRANDS
While
many NAMM Show veterans come to enjoy the musical spectacle and do
business with old and new friends, the 2013 NAMM Show was rich in new
faces, with 289 new
exhibitors representing about 700 unique brands spread out over the
sprawling Convention Center. Enthusiasm ran high among NAMM Show
first-timers. Apps and software, new technologies for acoustic guitars,
and performance accessories – all found a solid toehold
on success at the show.
“I’m
freaking out,” said Mike Miltimore, founder of Riversong Guitars in
British Columbia. Miltimore’s business card also bills him as ‘Passion
Igniter,’ and with
his incandescent grin it is easy to see why. Miltmore brought his
patent-pending guitar design to the show for the first time, unsure if
he would meet his goals of finding more international distribution. “At
the show, we’ve seen big-time interest from countries
I did not even know existed,” he said. “I also wanted to connect with
my current dealers, and NAMM is the place to do that.” Serenely
regarding the brisk business at his booth and his smiling, upbeat crew,
Miltimore seemed satisfied. “This is beyond my wildest
expectations,” he said.
New
exhibitors accounted for 20 percent of the exhibiting companies this
year, with another 118 companies returning to NAMM after a year or more
off. The increase
is a subtle indicator that the music products industry is stealthily
creeping back onto terra firma. Not so subtle is the vibrant, positive
feeling among new exhibitors, some of whom are at NAMM because they felt
the time was right to expand their businesses
and gather input from the music-making world.
“We
came to NAMM to network, to meet new retailers, and to get reaction
from the music professionals out there,” said Helen Georgopoulos,
director of sales and marketing
for Wave DNA of Toronto. Her company develops a drum- and beat-creation
software instrument designed for music producers, remix artists and
songwriters. “We’ve hit every one of those goals. People see the demo
and they immediately get the value and the uniqueness
of what our product offers. Music and merchants. That’s NAMM.”
Buyers
make a point to find new products at the show. “Coming to NAMM is my
mental catalog for the rest of the year,” said Clark Baker, owner of
Clark Baker Music
in El Centro, CA. “I always walk every row and see everything I can
because you never know. You could be out there, and Wow! That’s a new
thing! I’m so glad I saw that.”
INTERNATIONAL BRANDS/BUYERS
Music-product
pros also found that NAMM’s international clout is great for business.
NAMM traditionally attracts a vast international crowd of manufacturers,
exhibitors
and buyers from 94 countries from around the world. A true
international show, 492 of the exhibiting companies were from beyond
U.S. borders.
Mike
Kairys, president of Ac-cetera, of Luxor, PA, came to NAMM for the
first time, intent on acquiring international distributors for his
EZClamp and Mic-Eze products,
which securely clamp a variety of accessories from smart phones to
tuners on microphones and instruments. “The response has been just
excellent,” Kairys said. “We have a low-key approach, but we were
looking for possible distributions into China, Germany,
Denmark and others. I’d say just the first day of the show our
investment paid off in spades. We are getting what we came for.”
A
little more than 10 years ago, Indiana-based Rees Harps did five
percent of its business internationally. Currently, they do 85 percent
of their business internationally.
“We
began coming to NAMM in 2004 and it has obviously made a huge
difference for us,” said Melissa Irwin-Rees. “We love NAMM and it truly
has helped our business grow.
We come here to find new dealers and new distributors, and people know our brand name. It all started for us here at NAMM.”
Bringing
products to an entirely new potential cadre of distribution channels is
part of the NAMM Show’s enduring cachet. Bethany Pryor of Blocki Flute
Method of Gibsonia,
PA said the NAMM Show represents more effective international
opportunities than flute conventions. “NAMM Show is the best place we
have found to make contact with people from all over the world,” she
said.
PRO-LIGHT AND SOUND/VENUE
Products in the growing pro light and sound, and performance-tech segment of the industry provided some of the splashiest
displays and demonstrations at the 2013 NAMM Show, as well as some vigorous commerce. The show’s new, dedicated pro lighting and staging area, The Venue, was filled with exhibitors
such as SmithsonMartin, Mr. DJ, OmniSistem, Carvin Corp., NSI Audio and Performance Truss.
The
Venue exhibitors enjoyed raised ceilings and dimmed lighting in an
arena-style setting appropriate to the lasers and other lighting
effects, and tall scaffolding and trusses being demonstrated by vendors
here. Mike Weiner, president of Performance Group is a first-time
exhibitor at NAMM and in The Venue.
"Some
people said this show wasn't for us, but I'm getting a great reaction
to lights and our LED screens,” he said. “There's a lot of people -
retailers, people who do church installations,
which surprised me -- and event production people. All aspects of the
industry are here. We've seen South and Central American and Mexico
buyers with our biggest lead from Brazil."
As
the pro light and sound segment of the market grows at NAMM, some
buyers are prowling the exhibits to educate themselves, and their
customers, about the industry
as a means for expansion. Buyer Bryon Low of Annex Pro in Vancouver
deals in audio systems for universities, high schools and other
educational outlets. But he sees a day when his customer base will need
the related light and production products. “I’m here
to educate myself and get a handle on what’s out there so I can be
helpful to my clients perhaps some time in the future,” he said. “It’s
better to talk to the manufacturer here and have them explain it and
demonstrate it. Now I know what’s out there and we
can move forward.”
SEE YOU NEXT TIME
NAMM Musikmesse Russia (May
16-19, 2013) and ProLight + Sound NAMM Russia (May 16-18, 2013) offer an
unparalleled international opportunity in the growing eastern European market.
Plan
for NAMM in Nashville, July 11-13 as the show moves into the beautiful
new Music Center. The busy fall and holiday music retail season starts
at
Summer NAMM. And the 112th NAMM Show returns
to Anaheim January 23-26, 2014.
###
About NAMM
The
National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) is the not-for-profit
association with a mission to strengthen the $16.3 billion music
products industry and promote
the pleasures and benefits of making music. NAMM's activities and
programs are designed to promote music making to people of all ages.
NAMM is comprised of approximately 8,500 Member companies located in
more than 94 countries. For more information about NAMM
or the proven benefits of making music, interested parties can visit www.namm.org,
call 800-767-NAMM (6266) or follow the organization on Facebook, Twitter and YouTu