VISIONARY - Music Inc. Magazine

2011 SUMMER NAMM I BY KATIE KAILUS
BRING ON THE HEAT
The Nashville, Tenn.,
heat index will hit
new highs from July
21–23. That’s when
Summer NAMM rolls
into town, bringing with it the
show’s inaugural dealer awards,
a public day and a slew of educational
opportunities. The event
will be held at the Nashville
Convention Center.
THE DEALER OSCARS
NAMM will host its first
Top 100 Dealer Awards on
the evening of Friday, July 22.
The new program recognizes
outstanding music retailers in
“best of” categories, including
“Best Curb Appeal,” “Best Use
of Social Media” and “Best Sales
Promotion,” along with such categories
as “Support Music Local
Advocacy Award,” “Wanna
Play ‘Music Makes a Difference’
Award” and “Dealer of the Year.”
Attendees will get to see dealers’
submissions and the elements
that propelled these 100 businesses
to the top of the industry.
“I’m looking forward to recognizing
our members for the
great work they do each day and
sharing some of the best practices
within our community to
help everyone grow stronger,”
said NAMM President and CEO
Joe Lamond.
64 I MUSIC INC. I JULY 2011
2011 Summer
NAMM features
the first annual
dealer awards
“We hope this event will gain
momentum in future years and
become another good reason
for dealers to attend Summer
NAMM.”
OPEN FOR BUSINESS
An earlier version of NAMM’s
public day debuted at last
year’s show with Wanna Play Music
Sunday. This year, NAMM’s
unveiling a bona fide public day
on Saturday, July 23, opening the
show floor to musicians and in-
2011 SUMMER NAMM
dustry outsiders.
To boost traffic, the organization
has teamed up with consumer
magazines, including Guitar
Player, Bass Player, Keyboard,
Electronic Musician and Modern
Drummer, to market the public
day to their readers. The publications
will promote the event to
more than 1 million combined
subscribers each month and offer
a free three-month subscription
to all Wanna Play Music Day
ticket buyers. The publications
will also participate in creating
consumer clinics, master classes
and themed events for the public
on Saturday.
“We’ll have some great clinics,
workshops, panels and educational
sessions and special events
like the World’s Fastest Drummer
competition and Guitar Player’s
Guitar Superstar contest,” Lamond
said.
INFORMATION STATION
Music Inc. columnists will be
represented in full force at
the convention, with educational
sessions hosted by such experts as
Alan Friedman, Greg and Grant
Billings, Danny Rocks, and Pete
Gamber. Lamond also called
“The NAMM Retail Summit,”
Thursday morning’s NAMM U
Breakfast Session featuring author
Robin Lewis, a not-to-miss
educational opportunity.
“[Lewis] will explore how our
members can stay ahead of the
many rapid changes occurring in
this new phase of retailing and
give them some ideas about how
to make the most of this sales
year,” he said.
Lamond added that he believes
there’s still a need for the industry
to meet over the summer.
“We’re hearing time and
time again how fast the game
is changing and how critical it is
for the industry to come together
to navigate these changes,” he
said. “We feel it’s an important
role for the association to provide
this opportunity for our members
and the rest of the industry to
meet, do business and learn this
summer.” MI