Surf Expo took place in Orlando, Florida September 8-10, 2016 with a vast offering for Buyers from the US and 71 countries. The show featured 2,374 booths, and more than 230 new/first-time exhibitors.
“The buyer turnout was very strong, in fact we had an 11% increase in the number of retail stores in attendance this September” said Surf Expo EVP and Show Director, Roy Turner.
Retail Buyer Feedback
“Surf Expo offers the best selection for a buyer to discover brands that would sell well for a surf shop and boutique! I had an extremely productive show and wrote orders for various categories, including swim, dresses, private label clothing, standup paddleboards, towels, footwear, jewelry, and novelty gifts. I love finding new brands and meeting with the brands we do business with too. The show has so much to choose from so I always love going to Surf Expo!” Coco Tihanyi President, Owner, Surf Diva (La Jolla CA)
“Surf Expo gives us a chance to see a lot of new vendors we don’t have a chance to see on the west coast. Something new we saw at Surf Expo were inflatable floaties which is a great new category for us.” Eric M. Miura EVP/ Sr. Buyer, M.
Miura Store, Inc. dba. DejaVu Surf Hawaii (Lihue, HI)
“Most of the shows that I have been to focus a lot on apparel so it was exciting to see all the water related products, as well as truly outdoor products like hammocks and waterproof items.” Keith Umeda Buyer, Local Motion (Honolulu, HI)
Feedback from New Exhibitors
“I started this business after losing my husband to melanoma. That experience made me realize the importance of skin protection, so I started the UVSkinz brand and it’s been growing every year. This year we are venturing into wholesale. 
We felt like Surf Expo would be a good fit. I knew we had to get our brand out there. Expectations have been exceeded. We’ve met a lot of people and taken a lot of orders.” Rhonda Sparks Owner, UVSkinz uvskinz.com
“We just launched our wetsuit brand 6 months ago in France. We’ve had great success in France and came to Surf Expo to show our new concept to America. I believe there is space for new small brands in the 
industry. Surf Expo is the biggest show for watersports, so we chose Surf Expo to expand our brand. We not only connected with contacts here in the US but also South America and Europe.” Stanislas Bresson Co-Founder, Saint Jacques Wetsuits saintjacques-wetsuits.com
