Working Dog Trade Fair: Information for Vendors

2008 ADMA International Sled Dog Symposium

2008 symposium schedule

This is your chance to show off your products and services to symposium attendees from all across Alaska, the Lower 48, Canada and Europe. Several hundred mushing and skijoring enthusiasts attend the symposium every year, and many more walk in from the streets to shop, visit their favorite vendors from out of town, or learn about mushing and skijoring. This year we're once again marketing the trade fair to all working-dog owners, not just mushers. The trade fair is free to the general public.

The trade fair is open from 4 to 9 p.m. Friday, October 10th, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. As an additional promotion, trade fair exhibitors are welcome to provide printed material to be included in our registration packets.

Please register early to get the special early-bird discount, as booth space is limited. Our trade fair booths often sell out—don't take the chance of missing this great opportunity to showcase your company or organization. Download and print off the registration form (see link at right) and fax or mail to Lori Wilson.

If you have any questions or need further information, please contact Lori Wilson at (907) 488-2297, ljwilson40@yahoo.com.

We hope to see you at the symposium.

Please see our 2008 symposium home page for details on registration fees, lodging, and other important information.

Booth Setup

• Setup begins Friday, Oct. 10, at noon. Please do not try to set up earlier than that—we are still getting things ready.
• Booths should be set up by 4:00 p.m. Friday, and absolutely no later than 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Having a fully setup trade fair positively affects everyone’s business. Empty, unmanned spaces hurt all the surrounding vendors. Please keep this in mind when planning for your space.
• Booths need to remain set up until 5:00 p.m. Sunday. Breaking down before the symposium is over sends the wrong message to potential customers, and is again not fair to the vendors who do remain until the end.
• Absolutely no nails or staples are allowed for attaching anything to the walls, so plan accordingly. The wall dividers are available first to the vendors on the inside of the floor, and then are on a first-come, first-serve basis, so if you request a wall space, do not assume that one will be available and plan for being without. If you use tape to hang anything on the walls, make sure it is a tape that will not strip the paint, and will not leave a residue.

Trade Fair Hours & Booth Tips

• Hours are Friday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday night is usually pretty busy, with Mush with PRIDE’s evening presentation, ADMA’s junior musher presentation and the symposium early check-in, so don’t miss this chance to promote your business.
• If you are going to be away from your booth, please leave a sign telling when you will be back, or where you can be found.
• Make sure your booth is easily identifiable through sufficient signage.
• Have business cards or other materials that people can take with them, or provide materials for the registration packets.
• Offering symposium specials, drawings, demonstrations, videos, are all ways to attract people to your space.

Registration Packet Materials

Trade fair exhibitors are invited to provide 300 copies of any printed material to be included in our registration packets. Materials must arrive no later than October 1, 2008, in order to be included in registration packets. Mail 300 copies of your flyers and/or coupons to Lori Wilson, 2295 Keeney Rd, North Pole, AK 99705. Allow for delays in the postal system to ensure that the material arrives by the deadline. You can also contact me at ljwilson40@yahoo.com and we can arrange a meeting to hand-deliver the materials or to make other arrangements.

Questions? Contact Lori Wilson at ljwilson40@yahoo.com, and please indicate in the subject line that you have a symposium question.