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  • Hauntcon 2014

    There has been a lot of talk about where this show is going for 2014 and several announcements have come down from Leonard himself stating the show dates will change, venue will change, will be housed in a convention center rather than a hotel... blah, blah.

    Anyone have a prediction where this is going?

    I'm going to make one... Houston in January during the Halloween Retail Show.

    Just a hunch!

    Anyone have a prediction?

    Does anyone think they are taking up shop there and trying to rebuild the Halloween Retail/Haunt connection?

    I could and probably am wrong but I was just wondering if anyone else is thinking the same thing. If this isn't the case the best cities to cover that haven't been covered are Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, places where you can access many haunts within a drive.


    Larry
    Larry Kirchner
    President
    www.HalloweenProductions.com
    www.BlacklightAttractions.com
    www.HauntedHouseSupplies.com
    www.HauntedHouseMagazine.com

  • #2
    Oh Larry you are to smart sometimes. That is what I thought. I am pretty sure it is Houston though. I wanted New Orleans. Not sure I will go this year will have to see how this all shakes out.
    Phatman

    Comment


    • #3
      If Houston is the city how do you guys feel about Hautcon and the Retail show working together? I personally would have mixed feelings at that... it was the retail Halloween industry that wanted us to go away so we did. We have the best situation possible now with our own show where the staff is dedicated on nothing but haunted houses rather than retail and party supplies and 60 other things.

      So this will be interesting if indeed it is the case. I think for Leonard this is a no brainer his show has struggled and teaming up with another show makes sense for him. I don't know how you get a lot of vendors in January though... love to see everyone chime in on this.

      If this is in fact the case and they set up shop in Houston for several years back to back then the whole concept and spirit of Hauntcon itself is lost. I wonder how that will impact the show if it will help or hurt it. Again love to hear some thoughts on this one.

      Larry
      Larry Kirchner
      President
      www.HalloweenProductions.com
      www.BlacklightAttractions.com
      www.HauntedHouseSupplies.com
      www.HauntedHouseMagazine.com

      Comment


      • #4
        Specialization is hard but necessary

        I can see this show combining with the retail stuff, but personally I think this will kill it. The two are totally different audiences and different needs. I for one dont want to attend a show that is not dedicated and focused on what I do, so if that is the case, I will not be attending. I will find another show to meet my needs.
        Travis "Big T" Russell
        President
        Big T Productions Inc

        Owner and Operator of "The Plague" and "Camp Nightmare"

        Customer Quote of the year: "Damn, I pissed myself"

        Comment


        • #5
          Never attended either one!

          I kinda hoped to attend a Hauntcon just to give it a chance?! But no way would I care about attending this! It defeats the purpose and it is just going back to the old way that didn't work in the first place! There both dying fish let them drown each other! May be a bit harsh but who cares?! Its just like selling Haunted Attraction and then selling it again! Let dead dogs lie! And quit beating a dead horse! Its which ever you prefer! Ha!
          Damon
          www.frightmasters.weebly.com
          Last edited by damon carson; 08-08-2013, 02:26 PM.
          Damon Carson

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          • #6
            Leonard is a marginal player in the industry now he's been barely relevant the last 10 years. His convention is small and if the halloween convention people are thinking he matters enough to rival Transworld they deserve the fate that awaits them.

            DA

            Comment


            • #7
              Prediction...

              WOW, this looks like a job for the Great Hanfamonious!,, Oh Great One...where are you in our time of need?.

              From my perspective, first the "retail show" hands us walking papers, they move to whole seperate show they can control. Then without the Haunters they find out the show has no "life" ...boring! So now they want to infuse some excitement and get the Haunters back, look they even take out an ad in Hauntworld. But do we really need them? Very few haunts are in need of retail sales of costumes or halloween decor. Those that do already go to that show Maybe as some of us stated for years we need to focus on OUR NEEDS period. Those that think they will benefit from our markets will attend the show that puts them in front of that audience ..TW.

              If I own a costume shop I will go to a costume show, I own a HAUNT, so I go to a haunt show! Strictly business! And we'll just the keep the energy and excitement where it belongs!,

              O GREAT ONE...YOUR THOUGHTS?
              R&J Productions
              Las Vegas, NV
              www.LasVegasHaunts.com

              Comment


              • #8
                I guess it's official... http://behindthethrills.com/2013/08/...tion-revealed/


                ...Larry, did you have the clue in and spilled the beans? Shamey, shamey.
                http://www.hauntdesignkit.com
                >Download free Google SketchUp collections made just for haunt owners and designers.

                Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HauntDesignKit

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                • #9
                  All I can say is Lenard need one hell of a pre tour for me to attend this year. That's all I see the show offering me right now. The show floor last year was week at best, classes were good, and haunt tours were good. I go for research and I like to see what other haunters are doing.
                  Phatman

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I'm not trying to beat a dead horse here, but who will be the big vendors showing at this for haunters to attend? Hotwire foam factory? Asylum Coffins? Seriously, it's not a real show unless Scarefactory, Gore Galore, Dark Raven and all the top flight vendors are there as you see at Transworld. Transworld shouldn't be concerned with this. I mean, hasn't everyone already attended Leonards "how to get started in the haunted house industry" seminar at least 3 or 4 times already? And if he does a "how to be successful in the haunted house industry" seminar I expect every hand to go up and ask him if he's such an expert, then why has EVERY haunt he's ever done failed miserably?

                    DA

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I would like to continue to see peoples opinions on this development but I will offer my own... keep in mind this isn't a shot at Leonard or favoritism towards Transworld this an honest to God Opinion of exactly what I think is the case and what will happen and what probably led up to this situation.

                      For starters I guess they finally released the info because I kind of let the cat out of the bag... whoops! LOL

                      Lets just call a spade a spade Hauntcon was failing it was in no way keeping up with Transworld or even MHC and probably wasn't going to continue without some bigger pocket help... Leonard never really did a good job of promoting Hauntcon, didn't spend the money or the time that say MHC does or Transworld does. I think sometimes that concept of build it and they will come doesn't always work. In Hauntcons case it didn't...

                      Vendors tried supporting Hauntcon initially but it slowly died off to the point it was more about the tours than anything else. So teaming up with another show was probably a smart last ditch effort type of move by Hauntcon...

                      As for Houston Show this show isn't doing well either... the whole entire retail industry has changed drastically. Back in the hay day of Chicago (which by the way will never again come back again) most Halloween retailers were small business owners. Halloween was still way under the Walmart Radar lets face it... now its an industry just like the amusement park industry where just a handful of people run the whole thing! Morris Costumes and Rubies are the biggest players now as for selling stuff... then for buyers you are down to just a handful like Party City, Walmart, Target, then the smaller players like Spirits, Halloween Express then the handful of online retailers. This is an industry where the main buyers know what is available without a tradeshow... the tradeshow for retail itself isn't that valuable anymore no matter who produces it meaning the hay day Transworld or the people who do it now.

                      The Halloween Retail Show at least in my opinion is in a position where they have to ask themselves where do we get more people walking the isles, where can we find some excitement add some energy ... haunted houses.

                      I CAN PROMISE YOU THIS... even going back to the old Chicago days 80% of every BODY walking the show was a haunted house owner or operator. Even the retailers admitted that the best part of the show was the haunt side of the show. Despite all of this the main buyers of the retail side didn't see the mix with haunts so they wanted to rid themselves of our industry. BTW... those same morons don't have a clue that haunts are the industry that drives Halloween and are the perfect marketing partners for all halloween retail stores. Either way the bottom line is I think what is happening is two shows that are struggling trying to work together to create some additional synergy. Actually I would do the same thing...

                      The problem is it won't work... this will fail!

                      Most haunted houses are not interested in seeing Halloween retail stuff anymore. Two haunt vendors aren't going to Houston to exhibit because they are not ready to showcase new products and honestly they would lose a lot of money trying. Even if a haunt vendor did go it would be for one booth or two booths, and the real buyers for haunt stuff know the big displays with the cool stuff won't be until March.

                      Secondly most haunts vendors can't afford multiple tradeshows especially when the rates to display are as high as they are in Houston...

                      Lastly as for Hauntcon itself I think this is the demise right here... the spirit of Hauntcon is haunt tours. Now you are stuck in Houston and lets be honest that is not a haunted hotbed. Houston is also very far away from the haunt industry hot bed cities... we are talking about 1088 miles from Chicago to Houston for example. This won't be a driving show... so rule that out.

                      How about a real hot bed city like Philly we are talking about almost 1600 miles to Houston compared to 880 from St Louis to Philly or 756 from Columbus MHC to Philly so we are talking about HALF! So in short the location is just out of whack for the haunt industry at least in my opinion.

                      I think what has hurt Hauntcon is a lack of promotions and simply put picking the wrong cities... for example the last time he went to Houston it didn't go over that well. He organized tours to 13th Gate for example maybe the best haunt in the industry and boom only 150 people attend. Why didn't you just set up in New Orleans to start with... or how about Denver a city that is almost like an island because its far from every major city.

                      The best cities for a travel show would be Philly, New York, Boston, and Hauntcon never stopped at any of these cities. Why?

                      So now Houston again at a slowing down retail show? Why? Honestly this makes no sense!

                      I have to be honestly I would love to see the retail show in Houston I would love to check it out ... but I'm not going to it in January and I'm not making a special trip just for that show. I think Hauntcon can help some but Houston probably thinks this Hauntcon is a real true competitor to Transworld and if someone pitched them that concept they are getting sold a bag of goods there...

                      I don't think Hauntcon is going to bring any more people to HPC and I don't think HPC is going to do anything for Hauntcon but finally put the nail in the coffin because no haunter is going to be interested is seeing that show in January. Just my opinion!

                      When its all said and done I like Hauntcon and wish it would succeed and I've told Leonard this many times... however in order for it to succeed it needs to pick better cities and do better promotions.

                      Until that happens this move is probably the death of Hauntcon once and for all.

                      Larry
                      Larry Kirchner
                      President
                      www.HalloweenProductions.com
                      www.BlacklightAttractions.com
                      www.HauntedHouseSupplies.com
                      www.HauntedHouseMagazine.com

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Here's a Prediction

                        Originally posted by drfrightner View Post

                        Anyone have a prediction?

                        Larry
                        I have one! HAuNTcon will be in Houston January 25-27, 2014 - in the same building, the George R. Brown Convention Center, 1001 Avenida De Las Americas, Houston, TX 77010 and at the same time as the Halloween & Party Expo.

                        Prediction: It will be the largest attended and largest trade show floor HAuNTcon has ever had.

                        See a prediction is something that you have a hunch will come true and you gamble your reputation and stand behind the hunch. A prediction is not sharing something you got wind of just before it is announced.

                        I was surprised our 2014 location stayed a secret as long as it did. We have been talking to vendors and industry leaders about it for over a year now. We even had a false start on a scheduled Wednesday announced that was premature.

                        Larry always asks me why I don't post on Hauntworld, and it is because you people make me sad. If I hated someone, as you seem to me, and I saw them making a huge mistake, I would sit back, get the popcorn and watch the train wreck. You people cannot seem to help but slam everything people do, trying to damage them before they even have a chance, so your predictions will come true.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Who's irrelevant?

                          Originally posted by Darkangel View Post
                          I mean, hasn't everyone already attended Leonards "how to get started in the haunted house industry" seminar at least 3 or 4 times already? And if he does a "how to be successful in the haunted house industry" seminar I expect every hand to go up and ask him if he's such an expert, then why has EVERY haunt he's ever done failed miserably?

                          DA
                          What did I do to upset you DarkAngel. Have we even met? I see you want to own a haunt someday. Maybe taking my seminar would help. As soon as people stop packing the rooms to hear a seminar, I stop offering that particular topic. As long as people are paying $160 a head to hear what I have to say, then I will keep saying it (by the way, the seminar changes almost every time I give it. And I do have a How to Succeed in the Haunt Business Seminar)

                          As for being relevant to the industry, I don't really get up every morning with that goal in mind... but if I was as irrelevant as you say, then I don't think you would be typing my name so much.

                          I'll let you industry experts get back to shaping the Haunt World,

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Lenard I know you and Larry don't always see eye to eye, but you don't get on Hauntworld much and some of the people may hold that against you. As far as Dark goes don't take it personal he is that way with everyone, how someone feels that their opinion is relevant when he has not been to any trade show in modern history nor has owned a haunt I really can't understand. But I am questioning the move to the Houston retail show in my own mind. I was at Hauntcon this year and will say that I enjoyed it very much, like I said earlier the trade show floor was not expressive, class were good, haunt tours were very good, and the best part is the socialization between the other haunters. Your show was more relaxed than TW and it was nice, lets face it by the time your show date came around if your a serious haunter your big expenditures have already been done and the trade show floor is not the most important part. Now the truth is I am still on the fence about attending your show this year and it will be heavily determined by tour pre show tour and how many of my Dallas friends will be coming. I wish you luck and hope this works out for all my friends at Hauntcon.
                            Phatman

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Leonard we've met on at least three occasions. I met you up in Baltimore at Horrorfind in the early 2000's and you were doing the how to get started seminar in the industry that was two consecutive years if I remember correctly and it was free also if I remember correctly. I also attended several of your Transworld seminars and spoke to you afterwards where you had a smug attitude towards me and saying I'd be better off leaving Virginia to open a haunt.

                              I asked around and at every turn people said the same thing and that while you act like an expert haunts you have a hand in always fail. From Salem to Atlanta to New Jersey to everywhere else. I heard of your PIZZA PIZZA scare tactic and saw your terribly dated haunt you worked on in Orlando. You may have been in to something in the 70's and 80's but your style is too old school if you opened in any market with your haunt and had to go up against a lets say House of Torment or Pennhurst, you'd lose as you always have. You try to promote yourself as an expert but if you really knew how to be a successful haunter then you'd be just that, a successful haunter you'd have an elite haunt and you never have.

                              DA



                              Originally posted by Leonard Pickel View Post
                              What did I do to upset you DarkAngel. Have we even met? I see you want to own a haunt someday. Maybe taking my seminar would help. As soon as people stop packing the rooms to hear a seminar, I stop offering that particular topic. As long as people are paying $160 a head to hear what I have to say, then I will keep saying it (by the way, the seminar changes almost every time I give it. And I do have a How to Succeed in the Haunt Business Seminar)

                              As for being relevant to the industry, I don't really get up every morning with that goal in mind... but if I was as irrelevant as you say, then I don't think you would be typing my name so much.

                              I'll let you industry experts get back to shaping the Haunt World,

                              Comment

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