The week is nearly done, but it has taken me this long to catch up from the recent ISS Reno Expo, which took place July 19-22. Tradeshows wreak havoc with your schedule, not to mention your house, your bank account, as well as your mind, body and spirit (those minute things). You come home to an overflowing inbox, mailbox and e-box ... Your pets and spouse feel neglected ... The laundry has piled up ... There's food rotting in your fridge ... And you can't figure out where you left your phone charger. Such is life on the road, no matter how brief the spell might be.

But expos are fun while you're caught in their thrall. You see all your industry compadres and catch up on life off the ranch. The wine begins to flow. You're inundated with questions about your products and services and farm a bunch of sweet leads. Before you know it, you're on a plane, right hand to your aching temple, thinking about the choatic mess awaiting your eminent return.

So that was me this week. Now I'm heading for San Diego in the a.m. for a reunion with the in-laws. What is that saying? Out of the frying pan and into the fire? At any rate, exhaustion will just have to wait. At least this time there'll be fresh ocean breeze and lobster. (There'll also be LegoLand with the 7-year-old nephew, which is bound to be as relaxing as shooting up with Drano. But, hey ... whatever floats the family's boat.)

But before I say sayonara for the weekend, I'd like to share some of the general feedback we got about the Reno show. We knew going into this thing that it was likely to be a fairly intimate event. And we weren't sure how the new venue would go over with attendees and exhibitors. So here are some observations and comments that were shared with me since last week:

• People are always happy about the availability of gambling, so that went over well. And, apparently, the tables in Reno are more affordable than the Vegas variety.
• Travelers had a difficult time getting direct flights to Reno, and many trips were delayed due to power outages and dust storms. Of course, these things were out of our control; but they still went noted as inconveniences.
• The hotelnow in a state of transition between the Hilton Reno and the Grand Sierra Resortwas OK but not fantastic. We're looking into alternate venues for next year, should we choose to return to this city.
• Traffic at this show was light but steady. Attendees enjoyed having slightly smaller seminar groups and more one-on-one time with vendors. Exhibitors, surprisingly, reported high-quality leads and promising business prospects, regardless of slow floor action.
• People enjoyed the new laptop/wide-screen setup we had in the ISS booth. It allowed them to ask questions and get detailed information regarding our services quickly. And it was nice to NOT have to say, "I don't know. I'll look into that for you," or "You'll need to find that online when you get home."
• Lake Tahoe got two-pronged comments. On the one hand, our show participants loved the proximity and all the potential activities offered by the area. The complaint? The hotel was too far out to readily take advantage. Once again, if we return to Reno, this situation will be rectified by the choice of a more downtown location.

So, were you at last week's show? Give me your feedbackgood or bad. We'd really like to know. The ISS Expos are for YOUR benefit, so tell us what you like/need/prefer. And have a fantabulous weekend. If you need a laugh, you can envision me 'oohing' and 'aahing' over plastic Lego bits and dodging questions about children!

We're on the show floor at the ISS Reno Expo, and things are startin' to sizzle. Here are some storage peeps you might recognize. First, you gotta see the bee. One of our exhibitors is handing out these squeeze bee keychains, and they are EVERYWHERE. And they are very hard to put down. They're creating quite a buzzzzz.... Heh, heh.

I think this guy is really enjoying his bee ... maybe a little TOO much ... But I guess that makes sense, since it's HIS bee. I mean it's really his beethis is Randy Goldberg from the hosting "hive," Moving.bz.

Wayne-Dalton-Walton Gary and ISS Editor Kimberly Hundley "shop" for swag at the wide array of booths. (And, of course, they also grabbed a darn bee!)

Here's a lovely photo of ISS Managing Editor Drew Whitney with the girls from Universal Insurance, Kay Schaefer (left) and Randy Tipton (middle).

And here's that bee again, this time in the PhoneSmart booth next to ISS regular columnist Tron Jordheim.

This is just some guy who was talking on the phone at our booth. I heard him say, "I'm at the tradeshow right now. I'm working." Yeah, right!

Chillin' in the Chateau booth...

Our buddies at Buchanan Storage Capital...

Were here at last: The Inside Self-Storage Expo in Reno, Nev., which rolls until Saturday and culminates with our popular Developers Seminar. I landed near midnight last night, after sitting on the tarmac in Phoenix waiting out the aftermath of a dust stormyaaaaaaay. Nothing better than sitting in a metal tube, breathing in God knows what viruses and stale, recycled air. But now that Im here (and Ive taken a healthy dose of Echinacea), things are wonderful. The Reno Hiltonnow the Grand Sierra Resortis nice enough; and the attendees are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed!
 
This morning, we heard from our keynote speaker, Chris Sonne of Self-Storage Economics. And the educational seminars are well underway. In fact, Im presently sitting in the back of the room a-tap-tap-tapping away while Bob Hayworth of Baja Construction explains the ins, outs and benefits of boat and RV storage. (I wonder if my mad typing is distracting him? Hmmmmm Its a good test for the man!)
 
Its apparently coming on lunch time (and Ill get to peruse the SHOPPING MALL on the floor below us!). But Ill chime in again later with PICS from yesterdays golf tournament, sponsored by DBCI.

Props to the Self-Storage Association of Australasia, which was recently highlighted in The Age, an Australian newspaper. Executive Director Rennie Schafer, who has contributed feature articles to Inside Self-Storage regarding his local industry, was the spokesperson for the piece.

According to the article, self-storage is one of the country's fastest growing industriesto date, there are more than 900 facilities in Australia. Schafer attributes the increasing in popularity to public education regarding the product and the power of online marketing. I was impressed to read his statement that 85 percent of Australian storage companies are association members. Obviously the SSAA is doing something right!

I've never had the pleasure of attending one of the group's annual tradeshows (even though they're going on No. 17); but several of our advertisers and exhibitors regularly participate. They say it's a good event, but let's face facts: The locale's the real attraction! This year, the show will take place in Surfers Paradise on the gorgeous Gold Coast, Oct. 4-6.

The SSAA is to be commended for its organization, progress and forward thinking. For an association down under, it's a step above many in this competitive business of ours.