FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The historic French Lick Resort has hosted multiple presidents, movie stars and music icons over the years, but this week it was home to the Meyer Mega Show put on by Meyer Distributing.
The midweek show at the resort and hotel in French Lick – birthplace of NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird – should have been the third annual in-person Meyer Mega Show, but last year COVID-19 squashed plans.
The parts distributor was forced to go virtual with its show in 2021, but this year it was happy to be back hosting vendors and dealers in a grander setting than just a few years ago. Back before there was a Meyer Mega Show, it was mostly a “come to our facility” event, according to Seth Trueblood, an assistant manager for the distributor and one of the organizers of the Mega Show.
“This is our second physical show,” Trueblood said Tuesday. “Prior to that, we did smaller group gatherings at Meyer Headquarters. We’re just down the road in Jasper (Ind., about 30 miles from French Lick).”
He said the company feels its expansion into the RV market – which is relatively new but has grown rapidly – makes an annual trade show focusing on that market a necessity.
This year’s show drew close to 100 vendors and representatives from well over 100 dealerships, he said, including large companies such as RV Retailer and Camper’s Inn.
“It’s been good,” Alex Walker, director of sales at Blue Ox, said of the show. “Turnout’s been really good – especially with everything that’s been going on with COVID.”
The show started with a three-hour vendor gathering on Tuesday afternoon, in which Meyer representatives met with suppliers to discuss the benefits the company can bring to their customers through its network of a dozen distribution facilities all across the country. The bulk of the show was Wednesday, with that gathering concluding Wednesday evening with a presentation from Cody Ziegler, Meyer’s director of sales.
“It’s nice to see friendly faces again,” said Kyler Morrison, national sales manager for Torklift. “There has been a lot of rekindling relationships with people we haven’t seen in a while.”
“We’re pleasantly surprised by the traffic,” said John Primm, director of distribution for Dometic. “The industry is still abuzz, and we can tell that from the traffic we’re seeing from dealers here today. We’re getting into the season and things are just insanely busy. By all indications they are going to continue to be just as crazy.”