Trade Exchange
What is the Trade Exchange?
The Trade Exchange is a contracting trade show held over two days where ski product buyers meet one-on-one with ski service suppliers in a pre-scheduled appointment format.
When is the Trade Exchange?
The Trade Exchange is Monday, April 7 and Tuesday, April 8, 2008, in Vail, Colorado at the Vail Cascade Resort in the Gore Range Hall. Hours are scheduled from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM.
Who is a buyer?
To qualify to participate in the Trade Exchange as a buyer you must be a purchaser of ski vacation components. The buyers are made up of tour operators and wholesalers from all over the world. Approximately 50% of the buyers are domestic and 50% are international.
Who is a supplier?
To qualify to participate as a supplier you must be a seller of a ski vacation component. The ski service suppliers consist of ski resorts, hotels, lodging properties, ski companies, car rentals, ground transportation providers, ski rental companies, activity operators, property management companies, travel insurance, tourism bureaus and organizations as well as other sellers of mountain vacation products.
What is the format of the show?
The MTS Trade Exchange format is a bit different from other shows in the marketplace as it is the Buyers who sit in the booths and the Suppliers who rotate from appointment to appointment to meet with the buyers.
How does the registration work for the Trade Exchange?
To participate in the Trade Exchange and the pre-scheduling of appointments you must be registered to attend the Trade Exchange component of the Mountain Travel Symposium and have paid prior to February 15, 2008. Any registrations received after the cut-off date will have the opportunity to schedule their appointments on-site during open scheduling if registration for the Trade Exchange is still open. The Trade Exchange has been sold out the past several years and it is strongly recommended to sign up early if you wish to participate.
Buyers: Tour wholesaler/operator companies may request additional sets of appointments when sending multiple people to the event by submitting a request for an additional set of appointment to lwalton@mtntrvl.com. Any person wishing to participate in the Trade Exchange or wanting to “get on the floor” MUST BE REGISTERED to attend the Trade Exchange. During the Trade Exchange, registrations are not exchangeable or transferable. NO EXCEPTIONS. If there are multiple delegates from the same company sharing a set of appointments you will be requested to designate a lead contact to which all correspondence will be directed.
Suppliers: Each supplier company will receive one set of appointments for the Trade Exchange. You may have as many delegates from your company as you would like but the company will still receive only one set of appointments. Anyone wishing to participate in the Trade Exchange or wanting to “get on the floor” MUST BE REGISTERED to attend the Trade Exchange component of the Mountain Travel Symposium. During the Trade Exchange registrations are not exchangeable or transferable. NO EXCEPTIONS. When there are multiple delegates from the same company you will be requested to designate a lead contact to which all correspondence will be directed.
How do other buyer/suppliers know that I am attending the show?
Each company participating will be required to complete a profile form when they register for the event. This profile will be posted in an on-line Trade Exchange directory, which will be viewed by companies wishing to meet with you approximately 45 days prior to the event. The directory will enable you to review the profiles of all participating companies for the purpose of making your appointment requests. The lead company contact will be notified via email when the directory is posted and how to access it. Targeted launch date: February 25, 2008. Note: Only the lead contact from a company with multiple delegates will be able edit the profile submitted.
How does the appointment process work?
Profile Review and Appointment Selection: Each company participating (both buyer and supplier) will submit a list of appointment requests. Using the on-line Trade Exchange Directory you will be able to review and search the company profiles as well as submit your appointment request list. ALL requests must be submitted prior to March 7, 2008, to be included in the pre-scheduling of appointments. Note: Only the lead contact from a company with multiple delegates will be able to submit the appointment requests for the company.
Scheduling Process: The scheduling will be done electronically based on 1) buyer requests; 2) perfect matches; and 3) supplier requests. Please note: MTS has requested that the tour operators accept 10 supplier requests. A tour operator may decline to accept suppliers requests by notifying MTS prior to scheduling. MTS makes no guarantees regarding the number of appointments received. It is the responsibility of the attendees to market themselves to the companies with whom they would like to meet.
Appointment Schedules: Approximately one week prior to the event, you will be able to log on to the Exchange Appointment site and see the list of companies with whom you will be meeting.
Open Scheduling: There will be an open scheduling session on Monday, April 7, 2008, from 8:30 AM to 9:45 AM. This session, will give you the opportunity to add or change any appointment on your schedule.
Format/timing: Appointments will run on Monday, April 7, 2008, from 9:45 AM to 6:00 PM, and Tuesday, April 8, 2008, from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Each appointment is 11 minutes in length with two minutes in between to switch. The show format will be the Buyers sitting in booths and the Suppliers rotating from appointment to appointment.