Jan/San Owners Voice Few Regrets

December issues are usually dedicated to “looking ahead.” This year, however, we asked distributor owners to look back on and take inventory of their years in business. An SM survey asked jan/san distribution business owners: “Given what you know now, would you do it all over again — would you choose jan/san distribution as a career path?”

An overwhelming majority — 85 percent — said they would make the same choice, despite the challenges.

Details from our survey are included as part of Associate Editor Alex Runner’s cover story article, “Would You Do It Again?”

ISSA/INTERCLEAN^® New Orleans 2004 recorded record attendance, according to ISSA’s Director of Industry Outreach Dianna Bisswurm.

“This was our best Southeast show in ISSA history, despite the unusual timing in November, so we are very pleased with the results,” she says.

Overall attendance was 14,257. More than 1,650 distributor firms and facility service provider firms were represented — a 10 percent increase from 2003.

Bisswurm says the show is following a trend common in mature industries: There is an increase in the number of firms attending, but individual decision makers are attending without including additional staff.

“So those who are attending the show are higher caliber decision makers, which many of our exhibitors have been very pleased with,” Bisswurm says.

For show highlights, see our photo gallery.

Bisswurm says there’s plenty to look forward to at next year’s show in Las Vegas, including a “product innovation” show area where exhibitors can display products or services released in 2005.