NWFA Wood Flooring Expo Exhibit Space Nearly Sold Out

Booth space for the 2012 National Wood Flooring Association Wood Flooring Expo, which will be held at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., April 10-13, is close to being sold out. There are currently 200 exhibitors signed up for the Expo, which is the only convention in the world dedicated exclusively to the wood flooring industry. The list includes 45 exhibitors who are new to the Expo. A full exhibitor list can be seen here, and the floor plan can be viewed here.

The NWFA Expo has been completely relaunched for 2012. In addition to the exhibits, this year's show floor will feature a Demo Theater with a continuous schedule of technical demonstrations. Current NWFA Senior Director of Technical Training Frank Kroupa will take center stage along with former NWFA Technical Director Daniel Boone, Hardwood Floors blogger Wayne Lee and Charles Peterson, author of Taunton Press's Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing. All the demonstrations are free and will be capped off by giveaways of the products used during the demonstration. Click here for a full schedule of the demo topics.

Also new this year will be a closing party, open to all attendees, on the show floor. In addition to the Expo's signature cocktail, the Harley Floorbanger, the closing party will feature a multitude of giveways, culminating in one lucky attendee winning a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. The Harley giveaway complements the Expo's opening keynote speaker, Ken Schmidt, a former Harley exec who was instrumental in bringing Harley back from the brink of bankruptcy. He will share his insights about thriving during challenging times at the opening keynote from 9-10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, April 11. The opening keynote is also free to all registered attendees.

"The No. 1 priority for the board of directors over the last year has been to improve the show based on exhibitor and attendee input," said NWFA CEO Michael Martin, who joined NWFA early last year and took over as CEO following last year's show. "All of the hard work is paying off."

NWFA Chairman Rick Holden echoed those sentiments and cited a multitude of new measures, from a money-saving coupon book for attendees staying at the Gaylord to reduced shipping and handling rates for exhibitors, that have been implemented since last year's show. "This is a testament to the fact that the Convention Committee spent countless hours re-shaping the show into the image of what the exhibitors wanted and what the attendees needed," Holden said. "It also confirms our belief that if we listened to our members, the show would be a success."

Limited booth space for the Expo is still available. Contact Hardwood Floors' Kendra Bjorklund for more information, or go to the Expo website.