As 2005 rapidly comes to an end we are pleased to send you our Christmas newsletter and 2006 application pack. For those of you who have received two application packs, the second copy is for you to pass on to anyone who might be interested in exhibiting with us. (Make sure you write your name in the First Timer section on the Application Form. That way you can earn yourself
$200 after they have done 2 shows).
 

2005 / 2006 Past, present & future.

Wow, it’s been a big year for us at Dunkleys Shows. Firstly we moved office, from our location in Totara St (Christchurch) where we’d been for 15 years, to lovely new premises around the road at 63 Matipo St.
It was a very hot moving day on January 20th but a relief when it was all over (Fiona just happened to be in Vietnam at the time). We are now happily ensconced in our spacious office in the loveliest garden imaginable and are literally enjoying the fruits of our large, organic vegetable garden.

2005 was on the whole a very good year for us. We introduced television (TV 1 & 2) to our advertising mix and the results were very pleasing with increased public turnout and sales for exhibitors. We will be continuing with TV advertising for 2006 and are looking at including it in the Palmerston North, Napier, and Tauranga schedules.
 
Our $100 cash prize that we ran at most shows was a big hit with the public and we’ll do the same again in 2006.
 
Kim re-designed the show logo, giving it a more contemporary, fun look that was still recognisable. We used it in our TV, newspaper and sign campaigns and feel it was very effective.
 
We also promoted group discounts to a number of women’s groups (Zonta, Probus and the Country Women’s Institute) as well as rest homes, motels and schools.

THE SHOWS:
 
TAUPO - our schedule of 14 shows kicked off with Taupo and ironically this turned out to be our poorest performing show of the year. The good weather was against us, and as we have found out, the Taupo Events Centre was not the ideal location for the show. However a number of exhibitors have expressed interest in returning there so we’ll be back in 2007, at the Great Lakes Centre instead.
 
GREYMOUTH – our first show on the West Coast was a boomer!! The Coasters just loved us. They were so welcoming and friendly and came out to the Omoto Racecourse (5 kms out of town) in their hordes. They were good spenders too! The overall impression was “please come back next year!” and so we are, but to a different venue. This time we’ll be at the ASB Civic Centre which is downtown, behind the council chambers. The venue is all on one level, is more modern and slightly larger, and will have a marquee attached to the building. Exhibitor space will be strictly limited so if you’re keen you need to book in early. It will be a 2 day show - Saturday and Sunday, with set-up on the Friday.
 
BLENHEIM – a good show in 2005 but we’ve decided to give it a year off for 2006. You’ll see from the new itinerary that we are “resting” a few of the smaller shows, as they work better every second year, rather than annually. So Blenheim (and Nelson) are already booked for 2007.
 
NEW PLYMOUTH – we were back as always over Queen’s Birthday weekend. It was a 4 day show, closing at 4 pm on the Monday. This was our first show with the new TV campaign and we were delighted with the outcome. An excellent result for everyone. 
 
WHANGAREI – a consistently good show for exhibitors with a very high quality of crafts on sale. We are always very happy with this show and are looking forward to coming back in May 2006, about 4 weeks earlier than last year.
 
HAMILTON – for the first time in many years we tried the show at a new weekend so that it did not coincide with Fieldays at Mystery Creek. This proved to be a good decision and coupled with TV advertising we had a great show. The 2006 show is again booked for a few weeks after Fieldays. See you there!
 
WELLINGTON – another very good show – lots of public and lots of spending. Kim couldn’t stop smiling all weekend! Prior to the show we emailed  information to all diplomats, members of parliament and government departments as they are great spenders of higher priced items. It worked well so we will do this again as part of our total advertising campaign for Wellington.
We had hoped to have a late night on the Friday simply because of the venue’s proximity to the central business district and all those office girls who love to shop. Regretfully it did not happen but we have not given up on the idea. If we do manage it, we‘ll try it this time round in 2006 and will let you know in the Show Guidelines. The idea is to invite the “girls” down to the show after work on the Friday, for a glass of bubbly, some music, and shopping, shopping, shopping without their husbands, boyfriends or kids!
 
ROTORUA – the new venue, Rotorua’s Arena (located in the Girls High School grounds) was a great success with very good public patronage. Now that we’ve done a show there and know the “quirks” of the building, next time we’ll have a better traffic flow both upstairs and down. This show will be back for 2006 and “rested” in 2007.
 
NORTH SHORE – we were pleased with this year’s show and attribute the increased foot traffic and spending to our TV campaign. More of the same next year (and we love that free parking, especially in Auckland. Long may it last!)
 
CHRISTCHURCH – a busy show for most exhibitors and very popular with the public who loved the increased selection of crafts and artisan foods. We have started a new concept just for the Christchurch show – the Gourmet Pantry and would love feedback (excuse the pun) from our exhibitors who sell food items. We would like to group you all together in one area and promote you as a specific destination within the show. We may include a cooking area here, where exhibitors within the Gourmet Pantry could do some demos and samplings. So it would be much appreciated if our foodie exhibitors would give us their feedback - either email, write, phone or fax us.
All weekend we had been slightly nervous about a storm coming up from the south, that promised to deliver all sorts of mischief. At pack-up we heaved a sigh of relief and scoffed at the false weather predictions. However, the next day we were eating our words as we awoke to Christchurch covered in a thick layer of snow, that continued falling until midday. We were so lucky to have escaped it over the weekend, but it still caused us headaches trying to get down to Dunedin for the next show!
 
DUNEDIN & INVERCARGILL – both were extremely good shows, so we’ll be back for more next year. Sales records were broken in Invercargill with average sales exceeding $4,100 per stand.
 
MASTERTON - after changing the show from Tauranga to Hastings and finally to Masterton, we
were pleased that it ended up being a really good

one for most exhibitors. We promoted it as THE place to buy your Christmas presents, and the public loved it! As a 2 day event (Saturday and Sunday) it worked really well and we may do it again in a couple of years.
The exhibitor Christmas party at Kie & Peter’s home was delightful. Everyone was invited so a big number turned up and enjoyed their hospitality and Kie’s cooking! It was a warm evening and we sat outside in their beautiful garden until some of us just had to go inside to watch on TV the Silver Ferns thrash the Aussies at netball !!! 
Then on Sunday at 4.15 pm an incredible hail storm broke over our heads. It lasted about 10 minutes and the noise was deafening. Those of us watching it from the carport at the back of the venue had to block our ears from the din. Very quickly it became obvious that the roof, guttering and drains could not handle the deluge as a mixture of rain and hail poured in from all sides. Seeing a river of water flowing out of the lights in the foyer was more than alarming! We closed the show immediately, and everyone hurriedly lifted their electrical gear and stock off the ground as the entire floor of the venue became swamped. Many thanks to everyone for coming to each other’s rescue. It was a trojan effort from tiny wee Colleen Roil (the show hobbit) sweeping the tidal wave out of the back door every time someone went outside or moved a vehicle.
 
AUCKLAND CHRISTMAS – our final show for the year and our first at the brand new TelstraClear Pacific Events Centre in Manukau City. A fantastic venue with excellent lighting that made the crafts and displays look superb. Yet another show this year with increased public attendance. Next year we will be slightly adjusting the layout so that there is easier access to the eftpos facilities.
 
Well that’s it for 2005. Our office will be closed from Friday 16th December till Monday 23rd January but we will be coming in from time to time to clear our emails, messages and post office box, so please feel free to contact us during this time.
 
Merry Christmas and a happy new year from us all at Dunkleys Shows - Fiona and Kim Dunkley, Deb Balloch, Tania McLachlan, Craig Wilson, Barry Bain
& Alicia McKenzie.

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER AND WE’LL SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!

Below is a picture of Kim with our “WEE” billboard, taken outside the new venue in Auckland on the busiest road in New Zealand!!!




 

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