LAS VEGAS – An intense three-day Medtrade Spring finished last week in Las Vegas, with exhibitors and attendees reporting steady show floor traffic and focused educational sessions. “This show can best be described as steady and solid,” said Kevin Gaffney, group show director. “Enthusiasm was not overly high, but at the same time it was not overly low. Steady and determined is the ethos of the industry right now, and we are optimistic that things will improve.”

Comments from various exhibitors echo Gaffney’s sentiments. The following is a brief sampling of just a few of the hundreds of exhibitors at the recently concluded show at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. Attendees will have another chance to visit these exhibitors (and more) when Medtrade meets Oct 15-17, 2018, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

“It’s been a positive day at Medtrade Spring. I lot of people we see just won’t go out east, so the Spring show in Las Vegas works well for us. It’s an effective way to see these customers. We have an active sales force, but there are things you only learn at Medtrade and Medtrade Spring. We also get a chance to see our competitors and know where we stand.” — Jon Schultz, director of Sales, OxyGo and all companies in Applied Companies LLC

“Medtrade Spring has been good—better than last year. Our location rocks. The people who are left in the industry are more focused. They are legit.”
— Amber Yeager, owner, Breathe

“For the size of the show, the traffic has been consistent. If we are not here at the Spring show, our existing customers are concerned. We are already signed up for Medtrade 2018 in Atlanta.” — Brian Franklin, Thuasne USA, Quinn Medical, and Townsend

“Medtrade Spring 2018 had a strong first day. For us, we had a successful launch of our Maxi Comfort w/ Twilight Positioning, a power recline chair with a patented three motor system. Providers are able to generate a $1,000 profit per unit and everyone who sat in it, bought it.” — C.J. Copley, executive vice president, Golden, Old Forge, Pa

“Medtrade Spring was good. We had fluctuations, but mostly good traffic. We got to see a lot of existing customers and Medtrade Spring is the only time we get a chance to do this. We got a few good leads from what could be new dealers for us. At Medtrade Spring, it’s quality not quantity. You have more decision makers making the trip, so overall the show still has value.” — Pamela Bowman, Battery Power Solutions, Portland, Oregon

“Our west coast rep has made some good contacts at Medtrade Spring. We’ll be back next year for Medtrade Spring 2019 and for Medtrade 2018 in October. We believe in supporting the industry and Medtrade is a major part of that.” — Dennis Sharpe, MK Battery

“We’ve gotten decent leads, and we feel confident about the show. Existing customers are coming by to ask about new updates, while new people are asking, ‘Who are you?’ That includes three or four people who use our main competitor.” — Gerra Damman, implementation manager, Medforce, Suffern, NY

“What was so refreshing was the optimism of our customers. Everybody seems to have gotten their second wind. People are excited about the future. We got phenomenal response to our products. They were enthusiastic and optimistic. Medtrade Spring is scaled down a bit, but there is so much value in spending time with our customers. We’re going to be in Atlanta for Medtrade 2018.” — Micah Swick, national sales director, Pride Mobility Products, Exeter, Pa

Medtrade Spring Attendee Reactions

“The educational sessions were really good this time. There were fewer of them, which I liked, because it was easier to choose and there were not as many conflicting classes. There are wonderful people at Golden and other vendors, and there were a lot of good new retail items on the expo floor at this year’s Medtrade Spring.” — Don Dobbins, owner, Heritage Home Medical, Texas

“You get to see the players at Medtrade Spring, and we come here to support our distributors. We saw new and interesting products, so overall Medtrade Spring was good. We plan to go to Atlanta.”
— Mercy Ting Barland (left), national sales manager, BelleMa and Sunset, Walnut, California

“This year I really wanted to see what’s new, and I did. I found some interesting things, for sure. Medtrade Spring is in my backyard [California], but I might make the trip to Atlanta for Medtrade [Oct 15-17, 2018].
 — Neil McKay, Aircare Home Medical, La Jolla, California

“I found a lot of new products and new companies, and it was easy to set up new accounts directly with the manufacturer in a face-to-face trade show like Medtrade Spring.”
 — Mike Ukpong, Pearl Medical Supply, Colton, California

“We had good meetings. People need to look for outsourcing, and you had a good sampling of outsourcing companies at Medtrade Spring. Brightree spoke about it with good details. You have to outsource or you won’t be around. We will be going to Medtrade 2018 in Atlanta, because we’ve got to find the new products.”
 — Michael Fried, CEO, Community Surgical, Toms River, NJ, with locations in 20 states

“Medtrade Spring has been a good experience, so Atlanta is definitely a possibility for us. It depends on the exhibitor list. Here at Medtrade Spring, we made 15 new relationships and we will be selling accounts for them.” — Jeff Dailey, Senior.com, Santa Margarita, California, and Jesse Dunn, Senior.com

“We’ve been coming to Medtrade Spring for 10 years, and this year we came for the educational sessions, and to connect with our vendor reps. It’s gone well.”
 — Micah Desilvia, Blanca Sandoval, and Lisa Debence, Orthopaedic Medical Supplies, Corona, California