The Gold Coast Promotional Products Association (GCPPA) held its annual S4 Success Summit and Summer Showcase on August 15-17 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The regional association’s Success Summit was a day-long event held before the Summer Showcase at which select suppliers hold round-robin sessions with specifically invited distributors. The sessions are designed to provide more interaction than be achieved in a typical table-top or booth trade show.

“The Success Summit offers a great opportunity for more in-depth conversations between distributors and suppliers. Our distributors really enjoy these private sessions,” says Steven Lazarus, MAS, event co-chair and GCPPA’s incoming president.

Jean Kalinsky, GCPPA president of Gold Coast, adds, “The Summit event was the perfect kickoff for our Summer Showcase. We had aisles full of distributors until after the show closed.”

The Summer Showcase opened with a networking reception the night before and brought more than 50 industry suppliers to its trade-show floor. Alongside the trade show, it offered attendees the opportunity to attend a diverse range of education sessions.

Association Executive Director Mike Schenker, MAS, notes, “As a longtime supplier and exhibitor, I was pleasantly surprised to not hear packing tape prior to the end of the show.”