Now if you remember last year’s post recounting our trip to SuperZoo, when Florence went with me, it was as if I was with the “Little General”! From the number of vendors we had agreed to see, and how much time we had at the show itself, she calculated 8 minutes per vendor, and we followed this ginormous map she created. Even with all that careful planning, we barely finished the show in time to catch our plane!
Very different approach to SuperZoo this year! This year Jane and Gay went with me to SuperZoo. We used an 11″ x 14″ map sent by one of my distributors, and I had an Excel list of all the vendors I wanted to see, and who had any deals for us.
Gay brought her Mom, Camille, and her sister Dana, from Dallas, TX, met up with them in Las Vegas. Camille came to gamble, Dana came to visit with family, and Gay split her time between family and SuperZoo. I took this snapshot of Jane and Gay on our way into the show.
At this point you can see they are typical middle-aged women, ready to go on a buying trip. And then it happened, suddenly, totally unexpected ….. They saw dogs of all sizes and shapes, and just started squealing with delight, like little girls! The rest of the day, and much of the rest of the show, was like trying to herd cats! So, you won’t see many pictures of product, or even of my manufacturers … it’s mostly dogs, and more dogs …
This huge Great Dane was just outside the door, modelling a gorgeous collar….
I was able to get a few pics of products, like these prototypes from Tuffies Toys. I can’t wait until they are released for us to buy!
Dinosaurs!
Very soft fabric, yet tough enough to withstand aggressive chewers!
Very Tough toys!
We all fell in love with these toys!
And, yet, I felt like I was at an auto show when I got to this booth,
if you get my drift ….
SuperZoo includes a grooming competition, so you often see dogs walking around with their owners after the competition … That threw Jane and Gay into a tizzy!
This Poodle loved showing off to us!
Unfortunately, all my hard work on the excel list was wasted because at some point during the first day, I lost the list! We still had the map to work from though. We set a route, and tried to stick with it. Gay and Jane frequently got sidetracked by a dog, or an exhibit, or just plain shopping ….
Very large dog.. This ‘puppy’ weighed about 220 lbs.
You can see from Gay’s face, it’s all about the dogs! She and Jane had that look of pure delight every time they saw a dog…. So, at the end of the first day, I circled the (very small) area on the map of the booths we had covered, and showed them how much we had to try to get through in the next 1 – 1/2 days. That helped a little ….
Years ago we used to take our rolling suitcases to file all of our brochures, catalogs, and orders while we were at the show. These days they don’t allow our rolling carriers, but one of the exhibitors passes out boxes on wheels, very similar to our rolling carriers. We headed there first to make sure they didn’t run out before we could get a couple.
Unfortunately, the box has “URINE OFF” plastered all over it.
Both Gay and Jane were embarrassed to be toting these boxes around … But, once we started collecting all the paper, they understood why we needed these rolling boxes! We would fill both boxes each day, take them back to the rooms, and filter out unnecessary papers, keeping in mind that we would have to pay our airline to take them home ….
Jane’s loot at the end of Day One. Our map is in the lower left corner.
Gay’s box was full of items for our fundraising event on 9/24!
In the evening we all went out to see the sights on a budget …. Dinner at the Paris buffet, then on to the fountains at the Bellagio.
Dana, Camille and Gay at the Bellagio fountains.
Jane and I at the Bellagio fountains.
Back to shopping the next day! We visited one of my favorite booths, Pet Gear.
Oodles and oodles of strollers …..
And another dog! This Poodle really was fantastic! The legs were shaped like calypso pants, and there was an octopus carved on it’s back end!
Wow is all I can say!
This dog turned heads as he/she walked by!
With all the dogs there, I had to get a pic of a Golden …
Our loot from the second day!
Items for the fundraiser…
Catalogs and brochures for us to peruse…
Gay’s donated items for our fundraiser!
Our last day of the show was a blur for me. I was frantically trying to get through the most important part of the show, ‘Rodeo Drive’ where all the boutique products were! There weren’t many people there, so it was easier to make my way through the aisles. The last day some of the vendors allow cash and carry, so Gay and Jane were off shopping for their own dogs! I brought back a few toys for the store. Gay, on the other hand, had to buy a VERY large suitcase to hold her toys, etc. to take home to her dogs. Jane picked out collars and leashes (some for gifts) that easily fit into her suitcase.
Once again we found some great deals on beds. These bagel beds should be coming in the next week or so….
Big Fluffy bagel beds!
Meanwhile, Jane’s brother had flown in from VA to celebrate their Mom’s birthday, and he found us somehow! He visited with Jane as he walked along with her. Jane’s parents arrived in Las Vegas later in the afternoon.
We finished the show, and had a late flight back to Portland, so Jane and I headed to see the sights, while Gay went off to find her Mom (who did well gambling, by the way!). Dana had flown out early in the morning. Jane had never been to Las Vegas, so we took a cab to the Venetian, planning to walk the Strip as far as we could back toward our hotel.
I told Jane about the people who pose as statues, as I pointed this gentlemen out. She couldn’t see him; I’m sure she thought he was a real statue…. I turned her toward him, and pointed directly at him. That was the only way she realized he was a person, not a statue!
We walked along the Strip back to Paris, where we caught a cab, got our luggage, and headed to the airport.
Come into the store to see the new toys, food and treats we got at the show! We found Smart Dog jerky treats, sourced and manufactured in the U.S. from human grade meats, Bionic Rubber toys (not in the store yet), Invincible Geckos, and more!
