(Sorry earlier post …posted by accident as it was unfinished!)

Sorry to disappoint and with the chance of losing some readers , Mrs S & M is not a user of whips and chains. Her initials refer to stupid and moronic. ‘How so ? ‘ is the cry.
M&S have appointed a new chief exec , Tony Rowe. He has avowed to restore the company’s lost market share in clothing. One of his ideas is to find the new Mrs M & S. In my view that is part of their problem. It is as likely as finding Mrs S & M. The consumer has changed and many, unless it is high end and exclusive, do not want to be  immediately associated with any brand all their friends, colleagues,neighbours , and the person next to them in the queue can instantly be recognised as a High st chain.The young don’t and now the famed ‘baby boomers’ cash rich (apparently)and trendy, most certainly don’t . The latter group would, historically, have been the store’s target customer. Just as important is that the consumer is not stupid, if you don’t have what they want they go elsewhere or don’t spend.

Losing sight of who your customer is, is a common problem with many traditional retailers. And we, in the party industry, are not immune to these changes. After the fashion industry , we are probably as affected than most other retailers. Only last week I was talking with a retail customer who was explaining the extraordinary change in his local customer base over the last five years. It has gone from a low income family based grouping to a very high income, family, single, various age groups from early twenties to mid sixties. With such a change he is delighted to do so, but he has to make changes or the business would have suffered as opposed to flourishing.

Many are not aware of the huge consumer changes that are occurring . I am not talking about online but in consumer attitudes, wants and wishes. Many retail analysts believe that there is no shortage of consumer expenditure but believe that retailers are not offering the consumer what they are looking for, and as a consequence retail spending remains relatively flat.

Over the last 20 years there is a litany of major retailers that have vanished from the High St. There are often many reasons for failure but one common factor is not being aware their customer has changed and metaphorically ‘walked on by’. A very simple example of a retailer that has adapted, yet you would think was hamstrung by its brand, is the Carphone Warehouse. Carphones don’t exist anymore, but the company does  and is thriving.

Now what will be an interesting watch is the newly appointed CEO of Debenhams. Sergio Bucher, ex head of fashion at Amazon Europe. I suggest Tony Rowe, M & S  man and boy, will have his work cut out if he has a resurgent Debenhams to cope with.

Our industry will only flourish if both supplier and retailer are aware and adapt to these changes. The supplier must supply product to meet the changing demand and in turn retailers need to have confidence in their supply chain in order to introduce these changes in their store offer. The retailer, in turn, should be the first to know of these changes. They above all others , including online operators, are the ones who are closest to their consumer . The retailer is the only one who can ask ‘…what are you looking for ?’. Then make sure they hear the answer.

There is a trend. There is always a trend. Much of our lives are now governed by trends. Indeed people earn their living identifying trends. Trends are critical to our industry. Is it to be ‘where’s Wally’, Superheroes, Steampunk, or Downton Abbey, short skirts, long skirts, short hair ,long hair, high fat, all protein.If we don’t know what’s trending we don’t have the right gear to sell.

However,this one is, perhaps, a little unexpected. It started a couple of years ago when online operations thought it might be a bit different to have a shop. eBay had pop up shops in London’s West End at Christmas. The very same operator then opened up portals through Argos. Sainsburys buy Argos , in order to develop their own online operation (bit confused by this move) Then, lo and behold, Amazon open up book shops in the USA. It opened one last November and planning 3-400 more throughout North America . Now one of the UK’s main online gift operators is looking at pop ups.

It would not be the first time I have written about the importance of ‘clicks and bricks’ but the current situation is suggesting that the concept is taking hold with a number of major players. Some commentators are suggesting that UK online sales are slowing. I am very aware of a number of Internet companies within in our industry considering stores if they don’t already have one. You, only, have to look at Party Delights, one of Europe’s largest sites, they have one store , there will, undoubtedly, be more. 

Recently, one of my customers, who has a long established store and a strong online presence, illustrated the importance of a store. To loosely quote …

…..when somebody visits our site and leaves, we never really know why. When somebody walks into our store , we find out what they are looking for, can we meet that need and if not should we be looking to ensure that we would be able to meet that need in the future. If a consumer were to leave without buying something, we have the opportunity to find out why and to take steps to not let that happen . And often  it is information we can use in the development of our site….

It is no secret that a lot of onliners are finding margins increasingly tight. They understand that one of the hurdles to opening a store is the stock. They already have the stock, more importantly they probably have a lot more stock than most independent retailers without any further financial commitment. In many cases , they do not need additional premises as they can experiment by using the existing resources. Yet , there is one factor they do not always understand, and that is range. Many online operators focus on ‘best sellers’. As a store you cannot rely on just ‘ best sellers’ , if for no other reason, you won’t look any different from your competitors. And from here, I think there is a lesson for web shops to learn, I don’t believe they can either.

This is just the start, there be many more major players seeking a High Street presence. As to whether they can make it work is debatable . But I do think Amazon will . 

In last Thursday’s The Times newspaper there was a supplement concerning  the best companies for gender equality in the workplace.

Now I am a bloke, so I am not always that quick in working things out but for those who know me well, will know that I approach this subject with a lot of bias. I was brought up in a household that was predominantly female. For most of my working life , I worked in an environment comprised primarily of females, finally I have a wife and daughter. Some might say I am brainwashed, some may say I am soft in the head.

Well, all that maybe true but my argument is constructed on empirical evidence. Maybe that’s a bit strong , but it is based on my evidence. Within the party industry there is a large percentage of decision makers who are female. Buyers, managers, owners, creative , sellers, our market would have a very different perspective if it were not so.In my experience, they are more positive, they work harder, they tend to be more creative and they understand the market better than their male counterparts. Whether it is ‘Feminine intuition ‘, the ability to ‘multi task’ , their decision process involves a wider perspective and do not get bogged down with unnecessary detail or too focused on a particular aspect.

Yes, there are stroppy, rude , bad tempered, inefficient and lazy females, but they are as likely to be outnumbered by male equivalents. Over the years I have had that oft repeated experience of the young female buyer within major retail chains. They are no good and they cannot make decisions. In most cases this is not because they are female, it is mainly through the retailer’s attitude, poor training , not giving responsibility all of which would apply if these positions were given to men.  

Certainly, within the party industry, women are more likely to be in touch with what their customer wants. It is probably fair to say that the retailer consumer in our market is likely to be a woman, for a whole bunch of reasons , none of which are especially relevant here. The important factor is that females are often more aware of what is happening around them and react more quickly to change.

Our industry can probably hold its head high, when it comes to gender equality. At retail level , both bricks and mortar and online, many of our leading retailers, were created by women, led by women and more often than not staffed by  virtually entirely by women. Indeed, we could probably hold a beacon of light to other industries when it comes to sexual equality at th retail end. From the supply end there are many good examples however,mother level of equality has not reached the levels of the retailer.

Each gender has their own particular strengths and weaknesses. It should not be about whether one is worth more than the other, it is about enhancing and coordinating those combined strengths to maximum effect. We are different and that should be recognised. But it seems absolutely bonkers to me that the equality argument or discussion even exists. In itself it is negative and only takes time away from ensuring the best comes from both sexes.

When it comes to large organisations, the best that any European country can do is Norway, where 39% of main board directors are female. The U.K. lags way behind with approximately 23%.  

So having offended a chunk (albeit I suspect a minority)of my own customer base ( males) , I make no apology. The sooner we all get on and accept it , the sooner we can get on with making, creating , selling, supplying , helping, healing and generally improving our society and not spending so much time trying to prove that one half of society is not as equal as another. By arguing that woman are every bit as good as men, is not saying they are better, which means men are every bit as good as women. 

There is one fact , of which I am very confident. I have had first hand experience of how immense female mental strength and resilience can be. If as, a species, we ignore this powerful resource, then we do so at our peril. Sexual equality is a no brainer. For those that don’t get it, it’s a ‘win win’for all.

A story about  a red skinned piglet being bullied at some dubious private swine school maybe engaging but not what I want to write about this time , least of all because I don’t know of any.

The Ginger Pig , is about developing retail. As to what it is, I will come to later but much has been said in the financial press recently about the static , and in some cases, deteriorating, performance of our better known high street retailers such as Marks & Spencer’s and Next. Not all the blame lies with the Internet and tough economic conditions. As, has ever been the case, it is down to poor retailing, or rather retailers not looking far enough into the future and being blinkered by their own historical success. Accepting it is very difficult for huge retailers to change overnight, the crime is more likely to be ‘not evolving’ and letting outsiders creep up on, nibbling little bits off the plate, and then the little bits get bigger, until you have lost a slice.

Retailing has always evolved.  M&S were revolutionary when they first appeared on the High Street and evolved to achieve the successes they are known for. Next were the new kids on the block , introducing a new style of clothes retailing along with their own Catalogue. Today, there are a variety of clothing retailers that have taken market share from both, there are the obvious such as Primark, and the less obvious such as Zara and Uniglo. The latter offer different product, competitive pricing but perhaps more importantly quicker and more frequent range changes.

I know nothing about operating a retail store (‘you got that right’ says the wise retail reader) but I have a life time of being a consumer. I can identify two good reasons for going into a retail store(yes, I am male and I do go into shops), one is that I need something and the other is because I would like something. I class M&S in the former category and a ‘Uniglo’ type store in the latter. If I were a retailer I think I would like a bit of both but in a market like ours , nobody needs anything , the reality is that it is a ‘would like ‘ purchase. Moreover, the ‘would like’ purchase needs to be nurtured , and the customer to be enticed into the store. My issue here is that if they go into the store , see what they would like and make a purchase, all well and good . But if , on a revisit they see nothing new , they are not looked after, they will probably never go back in until they need something as they will assume there is nothing new and exciting. Consequently they may not then revisit until they need something.

So back to the Ginger Pig. This is a small chain of independent butchers. They identified a market and a consumer and constructed their business model around this consumer. They are slightly different in so far as they actually started by rearing their own pigs and then opened the shops. But ultimately, their basic product is what every other butcher and supermarket sells ‘meat’. But they have tailored this product in way that makes it different and they constantly create new product to ensure the consumer returns for their ‘would likes’ as opposed to their ‘needs’.

It is not for me to teach ‘granny how to suck eggs’ (never really understood that, why should she want to?). I am passionate about UK party retailers and believe there is a healthy future. Many of the good retailers create an exciting and inspiring environment, but there are those who are very reluctant about trying new product, and a different way of displaying the product. They just  end up trying to sell what everyone else is selling ,especially online.  I just think that this route only leads to the consumer going into this store type when they have to, rather than going because they expect to be enticed and nurtured.

Without exception, all suppliers will be, occasionally, asked ‘ what is happening out there?’ Because we are all in the same industry the answer may not be very helpful. We all need to step out of our comfort zone. As a starter suggestion, if friends or family start talking about ‘this great new shop’ (prerefably not a party or costume shop), try and find the time to go and have a look . It’s not necessarily important, what they sell but they way do it. See if there is ‘Ginger Pig’ near you.

As a society we are bombarded, daily, with facts and figures most of which are utter tosh.

It is the ‘red wine is good for you, red wine is bad for you, butter is bad ,butter is good ‘ syndrome. No matter what the source, politicians, financial analysts, industry experts , your next neighbour, they give you their  facts and you have to figure out whether is a fact.

Trying to steer clear of politicians , I did smile at Boris Johnsons recent condemnation of bankers as bastards ( he didn’t actually use that word, so that’s my bit of tosh)because they were only interested in lining their own pockets and pro EU, when only 12 months ago he said they should be embraced because of the enormous benefits they brought to our economy. He also said it was the EU ‘s fault that kids under eight, weren’t allowed to blow up balloons. This,also,  comes under the category of tosh. 

Science is surely the font of facts. Scientists only deal in facts.

Science can only ascertain what is, but not what should be….Albert Einstein 

Well sorry Albert, that’s all very well, but when we get a ground breaking announcement from somewhere like the multi billion dollar CERN establishment in Switzerland (that none of us understand ) screaming that a ‘ spot in a dot ‘ redefines everything we knew about everything else, only reinforces that yesterday’s fact is today’s fiction.

I have to admit to being one of those people who won’t credit the Great British Public with being over intelligent . In 2015 , whilst in a fancy dress shop during Book week, I overhead a parent asking a harassed retailer if Dickens wrote his books before or after the 2nd world war. It is then, to their credit, when asked which way they will vote in the EU referendum, a large number say they don’t know because they need facts. Well tell me, Mr & Mrs Wise Soothsayers where are they going to get their facts from.

So for , perhaps, one of the most important decisions in many a decade, the adult population will not be getting the facts they are seeking. They will be getting some facts , mainly from the ‘stay’ campaign , because there are to some degree facts, as we know what the status quo is. They will be getting figures from both camps, as there  will be will be guesstimates if we come out. Ultimately, they will be getting a load of tosh from both sides as nobody can possibly even guess to the long term  consequences of either result.

There are a few ‘hard facts’ , our age, our height, our name, where you live, but beyond that they get a bit softer. Even knowing your weight is dubious. It varies during the day , what you  are wearing , the accuracy of your scales. As for your kids, partners, parentage, it would take a lot more space than this blog to discuss . The point is in a world of unknowns, it makes decision making for governments, businesses, organisations and individuals extremely difficult.

About thirty years ago , a business could probably fairly accurate in forecasting what it would say expect to sell during a particular season. Today, that forecast has become, even within the most sophisticated of systems, more of a lottery. I find the irony in this , is that thirty years ago there was a lot less information available. As a consequence thought processes were not disturbed by the intervention of information. Now with so much information, and the immediacy of information, processes and actions are impacted up to the very last minute. A simple example might be … Thirty years ago , you see the traffic forecast for the Easter weekend is terrible, so you don’t go to see Aunt Florrie….today, the weekend news  says that weekend traffic is going to be bad , but your smart phone tells you the journey to Aunt Florrie looks clear, so you go….. However, today you may doubt whether your Aunt Florrie is your real aunt….. ? 

My concern is that it is the little guys ie the people that make up society, the small businesses that make up an important part of our economy, that pay the highest price for not figuring out the facts. Governments, expert analysts (including pollsters!) , top economists, religious leaders, researchers, often get it wrong , indeed can profit from their errors. In June, the Great British Public will have to analyse a load of tosh from both sides. The only fact that will be figured out is Yes or No. Nobody knows the consequences. There are no facts. Apart from one fact, there will be a lot of tosh.

The nearest river to Morrisons (supermarkets) is the river Aire. However, they have chosen to paddle down the Amazon. Or at least peddle their produce through the Amazon portal. 

At the same time certain UK analysts in the retail have stated that there will be a loss of nearly 1 million jobs in the retail sector over the next 10 years. Citing the main reason being the continuing  development and growth of the Internet.

Well,you would have to have lived deep in some remote Himalayan valley for the last 10 years , not to have realised that there is has been a dramatic change in people’s shopping habits. However , you only to have look at some of the new and innovative ideas that have come about recently to know that the future of retailing is not quite the open book, they think it is . 20 years after experts announced the nail in the coffin for book retailers as Amazon came onto the scene, Amazon USA have come up with the brilliant new idea of opening up Book shops ! 

So 20 years after scaring off American book shops, with their new fangled internet thingy for selling books, they are now scaring the book stores again, but this time with ‘shops’.

eBay are using portals such as Argos, Amazon have teamed up with a major grocery retailer, and have opened shops themselves, and John Lewis have one of the more successful  operations for a retailer in the UK. Which leads me to think that this shop idea is not such a bad thing.

Don’t get the wrong idea and think I am suggesting that all is well with the shop concept. Far from it . However, online operators are not without their problems. Costs and squeezed margins are an increasingly common problem. Ocado, one of the UK’s leading online operators , set up purely for the purpose as an online grocery fulfilment organisation, struggles to make money. Moreover, once a major partner of Waitrose, lost business through John Lewis (parent company) doing their own thing. Then became a partner to Morrisons, now potentially losing business to Amazon. Online operators throughout the party and dress up market, are constantly bemoaning shrinking margins.

But for a group of researchers to turn round and say that there will be a loss of nearly a million jobs in retail is to misunderstand retailing entrepreneurs and the quirky habits of shoppers. The reality is that any serious or accurate forecasting over any reasonable length of time is virtually impossible. This has been illustrated admirably by our very own Bank of England, and most other illustrious financial institutions around the world. Today, There are far too many imponderables , in addition to rapid and unseen changes in technology . It is disingenuous, patronising and downright stupid for anyone to make such a sweeping statement when there is no scientific rationale. In 1994, the beginning of the era of mobile phones for the masses, Vodafone forecasted the entire UK market for mobile phones was 600,000 handsets. By 2015 60% of UK adults owned a smartphone.

As with the Internet, shops will continue to evolve and develop. To survive and be successful they will have to change. To think they won’t, is naive. The level of employment within the retail will undoubtedly change. The retailer’s USP is knowledge and service. The professional retailers understand this, and both these features need boots on the ground. Retail employees have as much to fear from Landlords and business rates than they do online shopping. 

Actually it should be J.Sainsburys and Argos, but it does not scan so well.

This is the recent financial story of Sainsburys (one of the U.K. Leading grocery outlets, for those non UK readers) is stalking the Home Retail Group. The main interest is Argos, the on street, online operation supplying  mainly electrical and household goods. 

I haven’t a clue as to what the future direction of grocery multiples should be. And I have no more idea as to the direction of the future of the likes of Argos. But what I do know is that Sainsburys are undergoing a tough time and are struggling to redefine themselves, and Argos, whilst achieving some online success, are struggling with their own identity, and profitability.

Now, apparently the rational for this merger, is that Sainsburys are looking at developing their online and logistical operations, taking on the likes of Amazon. Well excuse me for being naive but that ‘…ain’t going to happen…‘. Nor, with my  extremely naive, retail analysts dunces cap on, is the merger of two organisations, both with sets of different sets of problems,likely to succeed.

The riddle does not stop here. Sainsburys started the Homebase chain and sold it off, when deciding it was not part of their core business. The Home Retail Group, current owner is selling it off to an Australian DIY group. All the main grocery retailers have stated  that they need to concentrate on their core business ie food. So why is Sainsburys going in another direction ? Is it because Amazon are increasing their food offering ? Whatever the motive there is now another suitor, the parent company of Benson Beds, the mind boggles.

Well, what has this to do with the party industry? More than you think . Argos is a portal for eBay, and a number of online party suppliers are using said portal. The parent company of Benson Beds, is called Steinhoff International, a South African operation with 6,500 retail outlets, selling furniture, household goods and general merchandise. All of a sudden it suddenly becomes more interesting…

As to where this all goes ? Who knows? But it is worth keeping an eye on it as at sometime or another it will impact on our market place in some way . I know which suitor I would prefer, if it is going to happen and doesn’t sound like a German beer…

Party buyers and suppliers have all now returned from several weeks of globe trotting . Hard negotiations by day, fine dining and quaffing of the world’s best vintages by night. Or at least that’s the perception 

Suppliers can gloat over a hoard of orders, and tremendous new contacts. Buyers will be delighted by the extraordinary deals they have negotiated and brand new products they have found. Or at least that is the dream.

There are many issues facing our market, one of which is, as with others , is the consumer understanding of flat lining inflation. Of course, fuel is down, interest rates are at a historic low, commodities have fallen out of bed, food prices are low, but the reality is that  none of these have much influence over any of our cost base.

Sure many suppliers will have had published few increases, retailers will have little opportunity to raise prices. The truth on price inflation is somewhat different from what the macro economists would have us believe.

Suppliers are facing fluctuating euro/dollar, sterling/dollar, euro/sterling and all in reverse. Price increases on products where competing factories have closed, leaving limited supply, changing conformities leading to higher testing costs. Retailers (particularly in the UK) constantly face ever increasing rents and local business rates, and now in many cases a bigger wage bill. All of this ignores the constant price pressure from online operators home and abroad. For the homegrown online operators they are under pressure from those overseas, putting even more downward pressure on prices. 

The bottom line (being very clichéd) is the bottom line ie profitability. If you are experiencing little growth and little price inflation, the likelihood is your profit margins are decreasing. Is the consumer interested? Probably not , until you are no longer there. Then, we are only party suppliers, their memory will be short , in most cases it will come down to ….do you remember there used to be a party shop here ?still this is a very nice cafe….

At least the retailer will be remembered, if an online operation disappears no one is the wiser. 

So the next time one of your customers complains about you having increased the price of something , lambast them with the realities of commercial life. I would comfortably bet they will care not  one jot. 

The UK’s HMRC have just done a deal with Google for £130 million back taxes for the last ten years. Some would say you ‘you gotta have a laugh…’ and most would look aghast at that figure.   I don’t think the UK differs much from most other European states in using American ( and most are American giants) as political tax footballs. They are big and easy to kick, Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft and Starbucks to name but a few .

I left Starbucks last as all the others have not inconsiderable links to our industry, in so far as most of us rely upon their services or products in order to operate. Starbucks has rather more tenuous links, but at least there are competitors. I,for one, have had meetings in Costa Coffee. That’ll teach Starbucks for not paying their taxes !

The point is they do pay their taxes, or rather they use legitimate ways to minimise their tax obligations. This may not appear right or socially just , but then that is the fault of European Governments. There is the belief is that Europe should had some form of uniform approach , but reality steps in as the companies would only seek alternatives. It all starts to get very political , which is perhaps a legitimate approach if it were not for the fact that it is mainly American companies that get bashed. In the UK it would not be difficult to look to our own venerable establishments. Our esteemed press DGMT owners of the Daily Mail, are in turn owned by a trust based in Bermuda, the noble Rothermeres, are non doms . Another, bastion of Britishness, the Daily Telegraph, is owned by the Barclay Brothers, once again based offshore. The Angel of British business , Richard Branson, a non dom, plus most Virgin companies are under a web of offshore organisations. Phillip Green, Top Shop supremo neither disguises nor apologises for being a non dom. The lists are endless.

Google are currently building a 750,000 sq ft (approximately 75,000sq m) office site in London. It will house 4,500 employees and is generating 1250 jobs in its construction. Amazon created  over 10,000 jobs in Europe in 2015. It plans to increase the UK workforce in 2016, by over 2,500. The other much overlooked fact is that many of the mechanisms are the creation of the Brits, the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, more exotic locations such the Banamas, Bermuda, and the Caymans. We  have to be very careful what we wish for.

Not only do these organisations have a direct link with the structure and future of our industry. They also have very close links in terms of creating additional consumers. By the nature of the demographic of their typical employee it would very likely be close to that of a ‘party’ consumer. The issue of the fiscal status of multi national organisations will not go away , any day soon. Whilst none of us , within our little industry , could even contemplate such complex and sophisticated financial mechanisms. What I do know , is there have been a fair few , individuals , fairly close to our market, who legitimately benefited from such legitimate offshore arrangements. 

My blogs will never be party political but occasionally they maybe a little political about those of us in the ‘party ‘ industry.

The question we have to ask ourselves, if given the opportunity to legally minimise our tax obligations, do we take it ?

In the first two months of every year, flocks of party buyers and suppliers seek the warmth of the various worldwide exhibitions, in order to discover what is happening within our market.

Not all suppliers exhibit and not all buyers (actually most) don’t buy . They use them as an opportunity to look, talk, network, consider , sometimes decide and occasionally eat and drink .

Having personally exhibited over many years, I am somewhat ‘gob smacked ‘ by how some of the larger exhibition organisers treat their customers ie exhibitors and visitors. The various organisers of the Spring Fair have been extraordinarily arrogant to exhibitors (particularly the small and medium sized) . The Spielwarenmesse (Toy fair) in Nuremberg, comes out not much better. When was the last time you payed to get into your shopping centre ? Well, you will if you go to Nuremberg. A show pass for every day will set you back €49 on the door(it does give you free local public transport for the duration of the exhibition). And if you want to stay in downtown Nuremberg, a 2 star hotel will cost you more than central London. Very pretty town , but does not quite warrant these prices.

Putting that all to one side, as an industry, we have very little influence in that direction, they should provide an invaluable tool to every business involved in the party market , big or small. The NEC, I chock saying this, provides a unique opportunity for those within our industry to spend some time looking outside. Because of the huge variety of product shown, it’s possible to look at other market places, and see if there any similarities, trends, products and ideas that may work or impact in our own industry. In Nuremberg, the opportunities are different. You can see and possibly meet other European and non European buyers and suppliers. There will  be products and suppliers, that your competitors won’t know about, but above all it is the only opportunity to take a comprehensive overview of what maybe happening within a broader retail perspective.

Don’t ignore the Halloween and Party show in New Orleans. Oddly the overall size of the show makes it the smallest of the three . However, as a great many of our industry’s influences come from across the pond , it should not be ignored, as an increasing number of Europeans are discovering.

It would be easy to carry on knocking show organisers. Apart from saying that it would be nice if they were to have put something back into the industry outside of showtime. In past years they have earnt a great deal from their customers, though undoubtedly this would be less likely over the last six or seven years. Some support during the good years may have paid off as things got tougher. Yet we are where we are. Our industry is not really big enough to support a party show , particularly in Europe. Even so, I am not so sure that it would be a good thing. I think we benefit from being with others. We are in a rapidly changing market place ( sorry, I say this a lot) and we need to see what is going on around us, as well as what is happening within us.