Attendees and exhibitors were eager to be back together in the Windy City for ASI’s third major trade show of the year.

ASI Chicago, which started on July 19 with Education Day followed by two days of exhibits at McCormick Place, welcomed 4,300 suppliers, distributors and decorators, a year-over-year increase of 23%.

The show floor opened with the traditional balloon drop.

“Everything about ASI Chicago – turnout, attitude, feedback, connections and events – can be summed up in one word: positive,” said Timothy M. Andrews, ASI president and CEO. “We hit the ground running as soon as the show opened Wednesday, with nonstop show floor action between high-powered, high-velocity distributors and hundreds of suppliers (82 new to Chicago!) offering innovation and in-stock inventory. We’re heading into the all-important third and fourth quarters raring to go.”

Education Day included a full track of sessions in sales, social media, decoration and business-building, including best practices for optimizing LinkedIn pages with social media expert Jay Busselle and ways to figure out your clients’ lifetime value with sales expert Cliff Quicksell.

Cliff Quicksell hosted a business-building session during Education Day.

Day 1 of exhibits started with an expert panel on the current challenges and opportunities for the promo industry, and concluded with the annual Counselor Awards (in person for the first time since 2019) and the unveiling of the Top 40 suppliers and distributors for 2022. Day 2 began with a keynote panel of ASI news, data and product experts to talk about the recent 2022 State of the Industry (SOI) report and product trends.

On the show floor, Todd Wallace, vice president of marketing and business development at Source Promo (asi/260722) in Billerica, MA, told ASI Media’s Chris Ruvo that the show was a great experience – one he believes will help him grow sales. He gained what he described as “valuable insights” from the SOI keynote and said he was able to have quality conversations with suppliers that helped him learn about products he was previously unaware of and ideate spot-on solutions for particular projects that he’s currently working on for clients. The effort included developing several possible options for branded mobile phone grips he plans to use in a pitch for a big order.

“The show was a good, manageable size, and I was able to have good conversations with vendors with my clients in mind,” Wallace said.

Similarly, Armen Kesheshian of distributor Willow Wood Prints (asi/360986) in Royse City, TX, said he got creative ideas not only for clients, but also for a new brand he’s personally launching, including how to use products like poker chips and coloring books to promote it. “It’s excellent information I can use,” he said.

Attendees could create their own design to add to a graffiti wall on the show floor.

Laura Simons of Lakeland, TN-based Burnin’ Love Laser Engraving (asi/150842) also had a positive show experience. Due to client demand, her family-run laser engraving business recently began offering promo products. She found everything from the education on offer at ASI Chicago to the conversations with suppliers to the networking and open candid conversations with other distributors to be highly beneficial.

“It was so much fun and overwhelming in all the good ways – so much good stuff to take in and learn,” Simons said. “It gave me a boost of confidence that we can really go out and succeed with [promo].”

Last day of #asichicago kicking off right now with a data analysis and hot-product display from our very own ⁦@Nate_Kucsma_ASI⁩ ⁦@ChrisR_ASI⁩ and ⁦@asi_joehaley⁩ pic.twitter.com/jbJHTkrgKW

— Andy Cohen (@ASI_AndyCohen) July 21, 2022

Suppliers too appreciated the general vibe on the show floor. “ASI Chicago was absolutely amazing this year,” said Edward Timmerman, a regional sales manager for Fossa Apparel (asi/55141) in Fremont, CA. “I was overwhelmed by the energy, optimism and project-brainstorming that we experienced at our booth. And as always, the entire ASI team did an exceptional job of hosting a well-orchestrated, fun and productive event.”

Timmerman’s colleague Tim Mason, vice president of sales at Fossa Apparel, said it felt like a show from pre-COVID times. “The traffic flow, design and quality of distributors was some of the best I have experienced in years,” he said. “Hats off to the ASI team for hosting an overall outstanding show.”

Distributor attendees line up for the New Product Preview Reception at the end of Education Day.

Suppliers also expressed their eagerness for meeting in person again. “I was extremely pleased with the show,” said Gary Rosenberg, director of sales and marketing at Compass Industries (asi/46170) in New York City. “The attendance was very good, and there’s no question it was the right move to be there. The people there were enthusiastic and interested. It was certainly good to see some friendly faces again.”

The show attracted exhibitors and attendees from a number of regions in the U.S., which helped to enrich the conversations. “Our team was very pleased with the turnout,” said Adam Stone, national account director at ETS Express (asi/51197) in Oxnard, CA, part of Top 40 supplier PCNA (asi/78897).“There’s still that ‘special ingredient’ when connecting in person. We met with distributors from across the country and had some great conversations regarding current and future business needs. I think we’re all looking forward to more in-person events.”