NEMRA 2019 Conference Attracts Nearly 2,000 Attendees in Dallas

Reps and manufacturers tracking their steps in Dallas at this week’s NEMRA Conference got in plenty of extra roadwork this week as they hustled to meetings throughout the mammoth Hilton Anatole. While Electrical Marketing hasn’t yet confirmed final attendance figures, reports were that the event attracted nearly 2,000 industry execs. Dozens of vendors’ one-on-one booths lined three aisles in a cavernous room the size of an aircraft hangar, and the hotel is famous for the number of suites and meeting rooms it has available for group sessions.

The first two days of the conference had the look and feel of one of NEMRA’s largest-ever meetings, a very encouraging sign as the association approaches its 50th anniversary in 2020. The meeting will hold a bittersweet memory for many attendees as the last conference for its president, Ken Hooper who will be retiring later this year. Hooper led NEMRA through an impressive era of growth over the last 10 years, and the many training programs he launched during his tenure from 2008 to 2018 gave members the necessary resources to up their game and become more professional rep agencies.

The Second Annual NEMMY Awards recognized rep firms and manufacturers for the marketing partnerships and innovative operating strategies that best exemplified NEMRA’s PowerPact program. Launched two years ago at the Orlando conference, the PowerPact challenges reps and manufacturers to adapt specific mutually beneficial selling, marketing and operational strategies.

Winning this year’s NEMRA NEMMY Awards were:

PowerPact Partnership of the Year

Skip Watson, CEO, Fields Electrical Sales, Lebanon, OH; and John Hoffman, executive VP, Legrand

Manufacturers’ Choice Award

Chris Coursey, owner, Bell & McCoy Companies, Houston, TX

Reps' Choice Award

Paul Suzio, Bridgeport Fittings

Heard at NEMRA

Lots of speculation about who might be replacing Ken Hooper as NEMRA’s president. The search committee headed by Fran Pollart, Pollart Electrical Sales, reportedly will make an offer to a candidate by the end of April, and one rumor we heard was that the committee is considering candidates with electrical industry experience, as well as candidates with a background in trade association management… Dal Ferbert stopped by the Electrical Wholesaling/Electrical Marketing booth to tell us that he will be leaving Littelfuse after 40 years. Dal is one of the good guys in the business and we wish him well… Several reps and manufacturers said that while January got off to a slow start, February is a kicking into a much higher gear… Tariffs. Tariffs. Tariffs… That’s what one rep said was the top topic at most of his one-on-one meetings with manufacturers... LEDs were once again the dominant product in the booths at the NEMRA Showcase of Services.