Setting Records at MAGIE 2017
August 28, 2017 For the past 36 years now, numerous ag retailers and their suppliers have made it a regular practice to attend the annual Midwest AG Industries Exposition (MAGIE) show in Illinois. From its early days in Danville at the city airport to today’s larger show at the fairgrounds in Bloomington, the Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Association (IFCA) sponsored event has allowed companies and their customers to interact and see all the latest products/services being offered for agriculture. Lately, long-time attendees have gotten used to big MAGIEs.
But the 2017 show topped them all, in so many ways!
For one thing, there were dozens of new products launched at MAGIE 2017. Normally, a half-dozen or so new items would be on display at a typical MAGIE. But in 2017, the word “new” appeared more times at exhibitor booths than it does at a Target store just before Black Friday rolls around. There were new sprayers, spreaders, tenders, and application booms, along with “smaller” new items such as front-end loaders and precision agriculture products.
Related: 11 Show-stopping Products on Display at 2017 MAGIE
Perhaps as a result of all these new products to see, MAGIE 2017 attracted a record number of attendees. Normally, the show tends to see just over or under 2,000 attendees walk its exhibit displays during its two-day run. But this year, says IFCA President Jean Payne, the total number of attendees was closer to the 3,000 mark.
“It was just incredible how many people showed up this year,” said Payne. “On the first day between 9 and noon, we had more than 650 walk-ups.” Even more impressively on the second day – which normally only sees only a few dozen “new” attendees walking the grounds, a busload of 40 visitors pulled up to see what MAGIE 2017 had to offer.
Finally, the weather might also have helped boost these numbers somewhat. In some years, being held in late August, MAGIE days have been extremely hot and humid, with temperatures regularly topping the 90-degree mark. This year, however, both MAGIE show days saw temperatures in the low 70s, with clear and sunny skies.
Loading ...Hopefully, all these factors taken together mean the ag retail equipment marketplace is now poised for a great year in 2018!
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