innovative meetings

live-music acts, which have been avail- able for sponsorships since 2003. Sponsorships aren’t the only area where NAMM does things a little differ- ently. With a celebrity-heavy crowd that often tops 90,000 during the course of four days, NAMM has unusual security requirements. Johnstone works with the Anaheim police and fire depart- ments to plan and train for the show, and many off-duty police, paramedics, and firefighters join the security and sound-control teams during the show. Adding to security concerns are the mobs of non-industry guests who try to hack their way into the show to gawk and score autographs. Johnstone turns away more guests than he lets in. So almost every year, he changes or adds new security measures to combat badge counterfeiting and swapping. For the 2013 show, registration desks and badge pickup were moved to the neighboring Hilton Anaheim and Marriott Anaheim, so badges and IDs could be checked immediately at the ACC’s front doors. This allowed attendees to roam the entirety of the ACC freely, as opposed to previous shows when badges were checked every time attendees exited and re-entered the exhibit halls after grabbing a coffee from the lobby or see- ing a concert at the hotel next door.

“Members loved it and we got very

positive feedback,” Johnstone said. “It changed the vibe of the show, and the fact that we were able to prop all of the [exhibit-hall] doors open was very positive for those exhibitors that were across the front of the exhibit hall.”

A PERFECT PARTNER Anaheim might not be the most obvious choice for NAMM — cities like New York and nearby Los Angeles house far greater shares of the music industry — but NAMM members are fiercely loyal to the city their show has called home for nearly every year since 1978. From 1998 through 2000, while the

ACC completed a three-year expansion and renovation project, the NAMM Show moved to the Los Angeles Convention Center. From an association standpoint, Johnstone said, L.A.’s CVB, convention center, and hotel community were “out- standing” in working together to make the show a success. But from an attendee standpoint, the move was disruptive. “The challenge was, they had developed longstanding, personal relationships with everyone from the bellman to the local restaurant community [in Ana- heim],” he said. “So we disconnected them from that. And since they knew they’d be back in Anaheim, they weren’t

2013 NAMM Show Breakdown When: Jan. 24–27

Where: Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif.

Who: Music industry retailers, corporate buyers, artists, and sound and lighting professionals Economic impact to Anaheim: $91.5 million Total registrants: 93,908 Total exhibitors: 1,496 New exhibitors in 2013: 289

2013 performers and attendees of note: Sir Elton John, Pete Townshend, Randy Jackson, Tower of Power, Mariachi Divas, California Transit Authority, Rick Wills of Bad Company, and The Living Legends Jam (including band members from The Eagles, Black Sabbath, and Fleetwood Mac, among others)

motivated to spend the time developing relationships in L.A. “Our people are comfortable in Ana-

heim,” Johnstone said. “They love the people there.… They like walking out of the convention center, into the hotel across the street, and having a cocktail in hand within moments of leaving the show floor. More people know the name of the bartender at the Marriott than my name, and that’s just fine.” Anaheim’s immediate convention- center campus includes the new Grand Plaza as well as multiple neighboring convention-hotel properties. The 1,572-room Hilton Anaheim and the 1,031-room Anaheim Marriott are so close that they almost serve as exten- sions of the show floor, housing larger exhibits, concerts, and, for the first time this year, registration and badge pickup areas. The Anaheim Marriott hosted two stages this year, and each year adds a pop-up restaurant to its lobby just for the NAMM Show; this year it served food-truck–style tacos. Even lobby décor and furnishings get updated or changed for the show. Given that the NAMM Show is such

a boon to the local economy — totaling $91.5 million in economic impact in 2013 — such accommodations make sense. In fact, the NAMM Show is so important that before he made the move to California to officially take over for retiring Anaheim/Orange County Visitor & Convention Bureau President Charles Ahlers in February, Jay Burress traveled to see the show and meet the NAMM team. “The partnership and commitment NAMM has made to Anaheim over their history is one that has helped build Anaheim’s reputation as a premier convention destination,” Burress said. “It’s one of the great trade shows in our country.”

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Contributing editor Jennifer N. Dienst is a freelance writer based in Charleston, S.C.

38 PCMA CONVENE APRIL 2013 PCMA.ORG