2002 SHOW REPORT

REPORT OF THE 2002
OTTAWA ORCHID SOCIETY SHOW

INTRODUCTION

This year's show was once again very successful - we had lots of interesting and impressive plants on display, and a considerably increased scope of craft displays as well as some outstanding floral arrangements.

The show was held in the same location as the previous three shows (Nepean Sportsplex curling rink), and as always we received very good feedback on the choice of venue. There is plenty of space for vendors and exhibits, with still some room left to expand if we need to in future. Parking is no problem, and access is good.

Major changes this year were:

Overall theme for the show, "Spring Song", shown in the entrance display and reflected in the OOS display
Expanded "Art Gallery" for the arts and crafts, paintings, photographs and floral displays
Provision of a "visitors' guest book" where people could make their comments.

"Internal" improvements for the show organizers:

There was a big improvement in the food arrangements, with both more quantity and more variety
A number of tickets (80) were sold in advance, at a reduced price, to a specific group
Use of members' area for registration on Friday and for judging HQ on Saturday

Based on the many compliments received and the overall positive response of visitors, vendors, exhibitors and OOS members, these changes appear to have been very successful.

Please click here to see a selection of photos from the show.

VENDORS AND EXHIBITORS

There were more vendors than last year (25 compared with 19) and almost the same number of exhibitors (38 compared with 39). The arts and crafts displays were significantly expanded and the floral arrangements were again very impressive, making an extremely effective and memorable show . Once again the vendors were generally happy with their sales - the attendance was higher than last year, particularly on Saturday, and they sold well. Even the snow and blowing ice crystals on Sunday did not deter people too much and we had good attendance.

ATTENDANCE

The total number of visitors to the show was 2325, plus 80 advance sales for a total of 2405, which is considerably increased from 2001 when there were 2182, and somewhat more than 2000. These were split up as follows:

Saturday	Sunday	TOTAL
1200	1205	2405
(2001 number - 1037)	(2001 number - 1145)	(2001 total - 2182)
(2000 number - 937)	(2000 number - 1350)	(2000 total - 2300)
(1999 number - 913)	(1999 number - 918)	(1999 total - 1831)

As we normally do, a survey was conducted on each of the 2 days, asking a sample of our visitors where they heard about the show. From this survey, we assess the effectiveness of different forms of advertising and focus on those areas which reach most people.

As in previous years, the largest number of visitors (about 32%) reported hearing of the show through the Citizen (Ottawa's local newspaper), either from our paid advertisement or else from references in other sections of the Citizen. Another 32% had heard directly, either as a member of the society or by word of mouth. About 7% reported they found the show through our web site, and 6% had seen our posters.

Of course, a large number of people are "regulars" who come every year, but only 9% gave "a previous visit" as their source of information - it is not easy to remember from one year to the next, so most people rely on seeing an advertisement of some form. The remaining 14% had heard through various other sources - other newspapers, TV or radio, etc.

IMPROVEMENTS SUGGESTED FOR 2003

Ideas for improvement collected from the members of the show committee are captured as soon as possible after the show (in the wrap-up show committee meeting). As usual these suggestions will be passed on to next year's show committee, together with some of the more important points from previous years - as committee members change, some items may easily get forgotten. By tracking these ideas and suggestions, we hope to continue to improve the show from year to year.

PHOTOS

Please click here to see a selection of photos from the 2002 show.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks to all the members of the Show Committee who attended meetings throughout the winter and who worked hard to make the show a success. Thanks also to the many volunteers who helped out during the show itself - we couldn't manage without you!

Dave Cooper, Show Chairman
Dave Thomson, Co-Chairman

May 20, 2002