What is Wrong With November?
 by Gene Muchanski, Editor
The Dive Industry Professional

The Recreational Diving Industry has two seasonality curves.  One is based on the natural flow of goods and services through the industry’s channel of distribution that was set up to accommodate the buying and selling of diving and diving related programs, products, and services.  The other is based on a time frame that is convenient for a particular stakeholder group and their clients in the industry.

Designing an industry seasonality curve that works for the majority of buyers and sellers in the industry is a clear-cut strategy with multiple factors to consider and integrate.  Seasonality curves are initially formed by the purchasing demands of the final consumer.  Diving consumers buy diving and diving related products based on the needs and the time frame, or season, they purchase their products.  In the recreational diving industry, it could be based on the diving season (Memorial Day through Labor Day), the industry trade and consumer show calendar, or the time period when diving products experience the most demand.

Let’s look at the demand-side economics of the diving industry.  Do most diving consumers purchase their programs, products, and services in January, in the spring, in the summer, or during the Christmas Holiday shopping period?  I’m not going to give you a universal answer to that question because it may be different for your Local Diving Community, wherever in the world you may be.  What I can tell you is that if you are a Dive Industry Professional and part of the Global Diving Business Network, you need to be prepared and properly inventoried to accommodate the sales demand of your customers when they are prepared to make their purchasing decisions.  It doesn’t make a difference what month it is, when the next consumer show is, when the next trade show is, or when your vendors are introducing their new products for the year.  All that matters is that you have the products on hand when your customer is ready to purchase them.

When we look at the supply-side economics of the diving industry, we see that not all suppliers of diving equipment are in-sync with their buyers.  The art and science of marketing was created to provide trade buyers with the products they need, want, and will purchase when and where they need them.  If this is true, then many equipment suppliers are under performing.  If they are failing at this simple concept of supply on demand then maybe they are out of sync with their customers and wrongly, in-sync with their OEM’s and trade show producers instead.

To be perfectly clear, we have to acknowledge that our industry seasonality curve is different for each of the equipment, training, and travel stakeholder groups.  The major diving equipment producers in the industry prepare year-round for a September 1^st New Season Launch.  New samples have to be ready by August 1^st so that Sales Meetings can be held in August, followed by a mass Dealer introduction in September.  That gives their Dealer base an opportunity to sell off year-old inventory while the season is still in play and promote next year’s products for the Holiday Shopping Period.  With the amount of activity involved with liquidating year-old inventory and bringing on new stock, plus the busyness of the Holidays, it seems that November is not the best time for a trade event.  At least not for the diving equipment producers.

Early November may be a good time to conduct a Professional Development Conference, where Instructors and Divemasters receive their annual professional updates.  At this time, the fall season activity has slowed down and the Holidays have not yet begun.  As Professional Educators, there is little down time in preparing for an annual update and there is limited, if any follow-up required after a conference.  Not so with the equipment suppliers and the travel industry.  It is the mountainous amount of pre-show, at-show, and post-show marketing work that conflicts with the Holidays, family time, and end of year business reconciliation.  There has got to be a better way to accommodate three distinct and different stakeholder groups while providing the trade show and professional development opportunities that are needed to perpetuate our industry that allows for growth and stability?

The Surf Expo is a similar watersports trade show that is about the same age as the diving industry’s show.  They have been very successful in holding their show twice a year, in September and January.   Of course, there are differences between diving and surfing.  The diving industry is mainly made up of equipment suppliers, diving related services, training agencies, travel providers, and a number of non-profit organizations.  The Surf Expo attracts surf equipment companies and a great deal of apparel companies.  Irregardless of the type of exhibitors, Surf Expo has an excellent reputation for attracting an impressive number of retail buyers during their scheduled dates, saving the holidays for their attendees and families.

Perhaps the diving industry can schedule a number of round table discussions to consider the issue of examining our current buyer & seller trade events.  We know that the industry needs an annual Trade Show for diving equipment, diving services, and travel.  We also know that we need an annual Professional Development Conference for the education and training of our Dive Industry Professionals.  We know that the September time frame works for many and that January has worked for the diving industry in the past.  We also know that November is not the best time to conduct the type of events our industry needs.

I think it is time the industry stakeholders get together and schedule this topic for discussion. What say you?

For more information about the Global Diving Business Network, contact Gene Muchanski, Executive Director of the Dive Industry Association, 2294 Botanica Circle, West Melbourne, FL 32904.  Phone: 321-914-3778.  Email: gene@diveindustry.net  Web: www.diveindustry.net

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