NMMA takes control of four Midwestern boat shows
CHICAGO – The National Marine Manufacturers Association has acquired consumer show management firm General Sports Shows, Inc., and the four annual Midwest shows the company operates, bringing the number of annual boat shows NMMA produces each year to 22, the association said in a release today.
Terms of the deal – under which NMMA will take over ownership of the Minneapolis Boat Show, Northwest Sportshow, Kansas City Sportshow and Des Moines Sportshow – were not released.
General Sports Shows is a 72-year-old Minneapolis-based consumer show management company specializing in producing outdoor recreation product and services expositions, according to NMMA.
“David Perkins and his team have done a tremendous job at developing these four shows into successful events, and they are great additions to NMMA’s boat-show calendar,” said NMMA President Thom Dammrich. “With our popular Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show and the St. Louis Boat & Sports Show, we now have six great events to introduce boating to consumers in the Midwest.”
The Kansas City and Des Moines Sportshows will be produced out of NMMA’s St. Louis office, led by NMMA mid-south regional manager Mark Adams and show manager Gerry Mulcahy. The office at NMMA’s headquarters in Chicago will produce the Minneapolis Boat Show and Northwest Sportshow, under the supervision of central regional manager Jennifer Faulk. Regional sales offices will be maintained in Minneapolis and Kansas City, according to the association.
“”I’m excited for the NMMA,” Perkins said. “They are a strong organization with a long history of producing boat and sport shows across the country. The NMMA will bring new ideas while maintaining the rich traditions that have made these events so great for the exhibitor and visitor alike.”
The dates and locations for NMMA’s four new shows are:
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