1
"The word drayage sends shivers down the spine of every trade show manager I know because it's a difficult thing to justify to management."
— Christopher Kappes, vice president, sales and marketing, RES Exhibit Services LLC

2
"It's crazy how getting an exhibit from the dock to a booth space costs more than it does to ship it from California to New York."
— Judy Volker, marketing director, Iatric Systems Inc.

3
"Drayage rates should be simplified – something along the lines of a flat rate per square foot. It's not like anyone works harder based on weight."
— Rob Deschenes, president, Exhibit Central Inc.

4
"Think 'monopoly' and you realize why you are paying an arm and a leg for drayage."
— Bob Stinson, international agent development and support, Airways Freight Corp.

5
"Exhibitors are downsizing or cancelling programs, not because trade show marketing is ineffective, but because rising costs are squeezing their exhibiting budgets."
— Mel White, vice president of marketing and business development, Classic Exhibits Inc.

6
"Drayage is an expense that should be budgeted for and carefully considered when designing and shipping a booth."
— Nicholas Galioto, trade show manager, The Lubrizol Corp.

7
"Drayage is often used as a slush fund so that show organizers can have a zero balance for all the other items they request from a general service contractor. There's no transparency on what it covers."
— Glenda Brungardt, CTSM, tradeshow/event manager, HP Inc.

8
"My biggest gripe is that we never seem to be able to accurately predict our final drayage costs in spite of thinking we did everything right."
— Larry Kulchawik, independent trade show consultant, Larry Kulchawik Consulting

9
"Shifting material handling into booth space costs would eliminate the sticker shock for exhibitors when they receive their invoices on site."
— Jack Thompson, CMP, CEM, president and owner, Expoexpert Inc.

10
"The thing most exhibitors forget is that material handling isn't just the cost to rent a forklift."
— Sarah Griffin, senior client services specialist, Penton