You didn't think we were going to leave Lakeland without a
chance to throw out some Congrats and/or some raspberries... did
ya?
Not one to miss a chance to pontificate at will (and we
will...and will... and will), here's what most
impressed us this week -- and what
didn't. And, in the VERY near future (days, actually),
we're FINALLY going to drop a real bomb on everyone... with a MAJOR
announcement that is the result of many year's observation of
Lakeland and dozens of other fly-in and airshows... Stay tuned --
this one is gonna be a doozie.
We started with the Good
News, so here's the NOT-so-good news...
6. Sun 'n Fun Attendance Games
Sun n' Fun put on quite
the show when discussing their attendance, with the media, on the
final day of this year's disappearing fly-in. According to quotes
from John "Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics" Burton, SnF did about
as well this year (attendance-wise), as they did last year. The
problem with this claim is that simple observation leaves little
room for credibility on this subject. Despite excellent weather and
some observed attempts to fix a few of the many ills plaguing this
fly-in, the week started out with light attendance that was
expected to increase, significantly, over the weekend. Well,
we got a big surprise when Saturday came and the crowds did not...
this should have been THE big day... instead of THE big
disappointment. And when Saturday tanked, Sunday was worse... and
well, the less said about Monday, the better.
We've talked to a LOT of folks about this... the reports are
uniformly (with 2 exceptions out of dozens) negative about the
attendance seen at this year's event. One well-known (and large)
vendor who tracks attendance through a part of their exhibit quoted
numbers well under half that of what they saw last year. All one
had to do was fly over, which ANN's Jim Campbell did nearly every
day on various test flights, to see that there were fewer planes,
cars and people than has been seen in the past. Why did this
happen? With complaints about the overall operation, safety, and
attitude of this event climbing to all-time highs, it was a simple
matter of time before visitors voted with their feet... and walked
away from this event... early, if not totally.
7. The Truth Behind Numerous Safety Issues
Credit where credit is due. Sun 'n Fun had a much safer show
than they had in years past... and some positive/welcome changes
have been made. But it impressed a few people as particularly weird
when Sun 'n Fun seemed to be bragging about not having killed
anyone in three years.
It did for us, too... especially after hearing SnF officials
tell the media and others (over the years) that ANN was all wet and
that none of our criticisms were at all accurate... then they went
out and incorporated a number of the very changes we suggested...
Regardless of all that, it's good that some of these changes are
being made... though we must note that many more need be made.
There is still too small a buffer between moving airplanes and
pedestrians, the warbird area needs more supervision and assistance
(too many big props and little people), the lightplane area needs a
much larger safety buffer and less obstacles to catch hapless
flyers, and the entire traffic system in and out of the airport
(which, to be fair, is hardly optimal for such an event and has
been straining at the seems for over a decade) needs an aggressive
redesign. Too many facets such as the conflagration around Like
Parker and the final approach procedures, in particular, need to be
re-worked... or someone else will fall victim to a (still)
dangerous situation. Even with the changes we've suggested and have
been adopted, Sun 'n Fun is still a lot more dangerous than it
needs to be. Still, we're pleased that they finally started
listening... we just wish they would listen some more.
8. Negative Selling
Certainly not a Sun 'n
Fun-isolated phenomena, we none-the-less were quite displeased to
hear increasing reports of a woeful (but hardly new) tactic being
used at aero-trade shows. The competition for our aero-bucks is
getting intense. Sadly, though, fly-ins like Sun 'n Fun are
becoming cut-throat events for some salespeople who think that
bashing their competitor's product is the answer to making a quick
sale. Based on what we're hearing from the potential buyers who are
victimized by such sales pitches, the tactic is not only NOT
working but quickly turning buyers away from a particularly
brand... and possibly even from buying a plane altogether. This is
the height of stupidity. While no one manufacturer is uniformly
guilty of these tactics, they all need to quickly and aggressively
retrain or remove ANY salesperson who engages in such tactics.
Period.
Competition is fine. Rivalry and pride on one's product is
laudable... but telling nasty stories about a competitor has
already cost 5 different manufacturers at least 11 sales according
to the reports we've gotten here at ANN HQ... and worse than
that... one of those erstwhile buyers decided that he wanted
nothing to do with this business after getting similar treatment
from three different manufacturers over the course of two days at
SnF.
9. Vendor Critique: Good and Bad
The vendor atmosphere at
Sun 'n Fun has been going down the tubes for years. This is the
most prevalent source of complaints we hear about this event.
Abysmal customer service, ever-increasing fees (some of which are
outta site... ask how much one had to pay for phone and internet
access this year and be prepared for a shock), difficult working
conditions, and declining ROI has made exhibiting at SnF a lousy
bet in recent years. As a result, we're hearing from a number of
vendors who are abandoning Lakeland in favor of other venues or
even just staying at home and answering the phone.
Vendor mistreatment has taken on near-legendary proportions at
Lakeland. Tales of people being taken to task for a complaint or
even asking for a promised service are rampant, with John Burton
and various exhibit chairpersons and their lieutenants being the
focal point of most of those reports. Vendors report being
threatened for complaining. Vendors report being treated poorly for
asking for the simplest services. Some report being threatened with
the police (one reported being on the verge of being beaten by a
Lakeland PD Officer called by a SnF staffer), one even claims to
have been thrown out for selling merchandise that competed with
some that were sold in SnF's gift shop. Others reported aggressive
demands for free merchandise or services for "donations" (and
indeed, when our parent organization exhibited at SnF, such
shakedowns were the norm) and many, many others reported simple but
prevalent acts of abuse or rudeness--contributing to an atmosphere
that took the "fun" out of Sun 'n Fun for hundreds of those we
talked to. A continuing informal survey of well over 100 vendors
indicated that they would be in favor of abandoning Lakeland the
second that a reasonable replacement was found... without a single
exception. Something is seriously wrong with the vendor/exhibit
program at Lakeland.
10. EAA Doesn't Exactly Live Here Anymore
Maybe you missed it, maybe you didn't... but EAA doesn't live
here (Lakeland) anymore. At least in terms of being a pivotal
partner to all that made Sun 'n Fun a once-popular event. After
leaning on EAA's broad shoulders for several decades, the egos in
charge of Sun 'n Fun have so contributed to a decline in the
working relationship between Lakeland and Oshkosh that a recent
agreement between the two pretty much removes the affiliation and
partnership that existed between them... even to the point of
removing the EAA logo from the title of the Fly-In.
I feel bad for the EAA... they gave this Fly-In its
start,nurtured it for decades, and have been rewarded with
ingratitude and derision. EAA is not perfect, but they can't
be faulted for trying to help a fellow fly-in so long and so
aggressively... and for cutting the ties when it became impossible
to countenance the way it was behaving.
Both sides are trying
to put as happy a face on it as they can (naturally), but we can
tell you in no uncertain terms from our conversations with people
inside and outside of SnF and EAA that Sun 'n Fun screwed the pooch
over the past few years with all manner of petty and childish
antics. Some of the problems were ego... SnF suffered from
Oshkosh-envy and wanted everyone to know that they planned to
out-do their parent... but even after lying about their attendance
figures for many years and inflating the perceived importance of
this event, it was obvious that they weren't playing in the same
league. This kept annoying the hell out of Oshkosh. Also, conflicts
over a number of issues, including the public serving of alcohol so
close to the fly-in activities (something that Oshkosh vigorously
eschews), reciprocal privileges, and the aforementioned frauds made
it clear to Oshkosh that something had to change if their
relationship was to be salvaged... but the 'Gathering of Egos' that
comprises SnF (mis)management didn't relent, couldn't compromise,
and the resulting updated agreements pretty much leave SnF to sink
or swim on it's own. We predict that without a life saver, that
this thing could be a goner.
In light of what we see in our crystal ball; there may be a SnF
2006, and even a SnF 2007... but if the future keeps tilting the
way we see it, SnF may be history by 2008-09. No matter what we may
feel about the organization that mismanages this event, that's a
shame.