2024 ABMA Convention Generates Buzz for New Expo

Artificial Intelligence and Recruiting are Hot Topics for the Brush Industry

With the scenic Omni Resort on Amelia Island in Florida as the backdrop, the 107th edition of the ABMA Convention was held March 19-22, 2024. The event was highlighted by an engaging program that revolved around several key topics for the brush industry, including recruiting, artificial intelligence and the mental well-being of workers.

Similar to previous Interbrush years, the event saw slightly lower overall attendance with the inaugural World Brush Expo on deck in May. ABMA president Chris Monahan (Brush Fibers) reported during the General Business session that the 2024 event had 135 attendees and 29 supplier tables. Despite the smaller footprint, it seemed the anticipation for the new Expo created a buzz and positive energy amongst ABMA attendees. That energy was particularly evident as attendees enjoyed the Wednesday keynote from futurist Michael Rogers that tackled the impact of AI and automation for manufacturing. The presentation easily connected with key issues presented during the previous day’s educational sessions, which included topics on recruiting, cybersecurity and mental well-being for workers. Considering the overall range of issues in business, there’s no question that manufacturing leaders are living through one of the more dynamic periods of change in the industry, which seems to be just in the early stages.

Committee Meetings

From an ABMA standpoint, the event started with committee meetings on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. The most active discussion occurred during the membership committee meeting where overall membership was discussed as the association saw a slight decline from 2022 to 2023.

Of particular interest was the dilemma of whether or not to allow international brush manufacturers to join the association. The committee discussion indicated that the number of brush manufacturers in America was unlikely to increase, so that would make membership growth challenging. Without membership growth, the existing members would likely see membership dues increase. The counterargument was that it wouldn’t be an “American” brush association if the ABMA opened up to international brush manufacturers. Additionally, that would effectively change the mission of the association.

It was noted that the World Brush Expo was likely driving the increase in the number of international inquiries, which in turn was creating some urgency around enforcing a policy. The issue was left for the ABMA Board to discuss in their closing session on Friday morning.

Educational Sessions

After the committee sessions on Tuesday and a lunch break, the event officially opened in the afternoon with an introduction from ABMA Vice President R.J. Lindstrom (Zephyr Manufacturing). That was followed by the “breakout” educational sessions which ran concurrent 40-minute sessions that were repeated so attendees could attend all three, which included:

• Mental Health and Well-Being in the Workforce-Heather Noftall, HR Professional

• Data and Device Security, Ransomware-Chad Reinbold, SCS, Inc.

• Attracting Talent to Smaller Companies-Tim Pugh, Candidate Advocates

Kevin Monahan, Monahan Partners, attended all of the sessions and had a positive impression of all three. He says, “The cybersecurity stuff is scary but it hopefully gives a lot of people some tools. Then the attracting talent session was good.

I thought the presenter was really good and knew his stuff. I think we’re all kind of in the same boat as none of us here are enormous companies and most are not in big cities, so it was very relevant.”

Alessandro Acquaderni, FEIBP President (SIT Brush), commented on the success of the sessions as well and said that his favorite was also the one on Attracting Talent. He says, “That was very insightful and also it’s a hot topic nowadays. We are experiencing a lot of things, both in Europe and here in the U.S. Recently, we hired somebody on a Friday, signed the contract and Monday was going to be the first day. On Monday, he doesn’t show up and we see another person coming in. He says, ‘You’re looking for workers right?’ And we said, ‘Yes, well … who are you?’ He replied, ‘There’s a friend of mine that was supposed to start today, but he’s not going to start, but he referred me to you. So I can start if you’re willing.’”

General Business Session

On Wednesday morning, the convention shifted toward the General Business Session led by ABMA President Chris Monahan where all of the committee reports were delivered. Additionally, Acquaderni presented on behalf of the World Brush Expo and the FEIBP. His first segment highlighted a number of key trends for European brush manufacturers as he noted several challenges including inflation, the Russia/Ukraine War, conflict in the Middle East and the issues with the Suez Canal. He highlighted the fact that 90 percent of global transport is by sea and 15 percent of that traffic goes through the Suez Canal. He said the issues there led to a 15 percent increase in shipping costs.

On the positive side, he said the Eurozone GDP is expected to grow by one percent in 2024 and the FEIBP brush manufacturer quarterly surveys indicate optimism from member companies.

Additionally, he presented statistics on social media trends for the FEIBP member companies. He reported 24 percent growth in visibility on social media collectively with LinkedIn as the top social platform from member companies at 31 percent growth and 1.77 million cumulative followers. Facebook and Instagram also saw growth for FEIBP members while X (Twitter) saw a 0.5 percent decrease.

From the World Brush Expo perspective, Acquaderni emphasized the value of the upcoming event and how important it is for all brushware industry companies to take advantage of the opportunity to network, build on existing relationships and discover new opportunities. He was pleased to report the event already had more than 150 exhibitors and says that this was impressive considering the event was announced only 12 months prior. He noted that it was quite an achievement that an event of this scale was coming together so quickly under the collaboration of the ABMA and FEIBP with Bolognafiere.

Scholarships Announced

The ABMA Foundation Kathy K. Parr Scholarship Awards were also announced during the session with the following students earning scholarships:

JONATHAN CIULLO: Sophomore at Illinois Wesleyan University studying Business Entrepreneurship and Kinesiology. He is the son of Rachel Ciullo, Composite Cutter Technology.

LEALA PATRISS: Freshman at Midlands Technical College studying Sports Medicine, Exercise Science. She is the daughter of an employee at Perlon/Hahl.

BRYCE PENCE: Freshman at Howard Payne University studying Business and Kinesiology. He is the son of an employee at Zephyr Mfg.

CONNOR TIEGS: Junior at the University of WisconsinMilwaukee studying Business-Finance. He is the son of an employee at Osborn International.

JAEDEN TIEGS: Freshman at the University of WisconsinMilwaukee studying Mechanical Engineering. He is the son of an employee at Osborn International.

Face 2 Face Stands Out

Thursday was the attendees’ final day, with the Suppliers Face 2 Face session once again proving to be the most valued component of the convention. The “speed dating” style meeting format featured 29 supplier tables with 15-minute meeting sessions that ran from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Since the introduction of the Face 2 Face format in 2019, manufacturers and suppliers have continued to praise the session as it offers focused discussion opportunities and a methodical approach to meeting with key clients. There’s no question that convention attendees consider the chance to participate in the Face 2 Face session as one of the top benefits of ABMA membership and of attending the convention.

“You do a lot of business in the Face 2 Face, but the networking outside the Face 2 Face is just as important,” says David Kalisz, MFC Ltd. “The main part is the opportunity to learn from customers. You might hear about a problem they are having in production and they didn’t think about a new solution you might have for them. It all comes out of conversations, and if you don’t sit with them, you won’t learn it. The relationships you have with customers are cemented by the Face 2 Face meetings.”

Event Impressions

Following the Face 2 Face meetings, Thursday afternoon was left open for attendees and the evening then featured the traditional Suppliers’ Reception, which featured “A Taste of Italy” theme. The final day illustrated how the overall event seemed to have landed on an effective balance between engaging sessions and activities while also providing some space for additional conversations.

As for the overall impressions of the 2024 convention, ABMA Executive Director Donna Frendt says, “I think it’s been a successful event, a great turnout and people have been very happy with the meeting times and everything else that’s going on. They’re having good interactions. A lot of trade shows, I think, are going by the wayside. You really have to see the value in the relationships … you know it’s a long game. You come and you build the relationships and maybe you don’t do business today, but when they need you down the line, they know who you are.”

Kevin Monahan adds, “It’s a good combination of an opportunity to learn from the sessions and keynote, and of course, there are very few opportunities for us to see so many different customers in the same place. That’s one of the huge values of coming to the ABMA Convention. It continues to be unique, not just in that it is kind of a niche industry, but also the people, it is a genuinely friendly environment even amongst competitors and that’s hard to come by.”

Acquaderni says that the convention is always a great opportunity to strengthen business and relationships. “Business is always made based on trust, and the more trust there is between companies the easier the relationship is managed,” he says. “Someone may think the convention takes too much time or there is not enough business. But it’s fundamental in building up the trust that will facilitate a business relationship. Now I have a very good relationship with many suppliers and many other brush companies. When we need something, we know we will have a priority and when they need something, we probably already know what they need, so that makes business easier, faster and more reliable.”

2024 Convention Notes

• The 2025 ABMA Convention will be held March 25-28, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines outside Austin, Texas. The event will retain the Tuesday through Friday format introduced to offer better pricing on lodging.

• Looking further ahead, future ABMA convention sites being considered for 2026 and beyond include Bonita Springs, Florida, Puerto Rico and Arizona.

• The ABMA Officers for 2024 are Chris Monahan (Brush Fibers) — President, R.J. Lindstrom (Zephyr Manufacturing) — Vice President, Todd Leventhal (Nexstep Commercial Products) — Treasurer and Greg Miller (The Mill-Rose Company) —Past President.

• The ABMA Board for 2024 includes Ernest “Chip” Preston (Spiral Brushes), Ed Lowder (Monterey Mills), Terry Hogan (Perlon, Hahl), Tim Hack (Epic Resins), Lance Cheney (Braun Brush), Imre Karetka (Pferd, Inc.), Mike Khabibulin (Sherwin Williams) and Rachel Ciullo (Composite Cutter).

• Alessandro Acquaderni reported that the World Brush Expo LinkedIn Page has 468 followers and 240,000 impressions since its launch. In addition, the event website has had 20,000 visitors since June of 2023 from 113 countries.

• Following the 2024 FEIBP Congress this October in Ibiza, Spain, the 2025 Congress is targeted for Ischia, Italy.