The Main Event: Drexel's Grand Expo
Drexel Building Supply, a materials and service provider for the home construction industry, has a strong brand and an even stronger fanbase. To connect with internal and external stakeholders, Drexel hosts a Grand Expo. This biennial event brings together customers, vendors, and team members for two days of celebration, professional development, and networking. In partnership with Drexel, Ampersand planned, promoted, and executed the 2020 Grand Expo, which saw more than 1,000 attendees packed into the Osthoff Resort.
Event Planning & Management
Brand Identity & Standards
Key Messaging & Positioning
Print Collateral & Direct Mail
Web Design & Development
SEO / SEM
Email & Content Marketing
Budget Management
Having a Grand Time
Drexel’s Grand Expo has evolved over the years from a team party to a full-scale industry event. The 2020 expo, which took place at the Osthoff Resort in Elkhart Lake, featured a half-day Vendor Summit, a vendor showcase, CEU classes, and plenty of opportunities to kick back and socialize. Grand Expo provides Drexel a chance to interact with everyone connected to its business in a fun, unforgettable way. We’re proud to help Drexel deliver on its promise to “Supply. Happiness.”
Big Events Mean Big Plans
To ensure that Grand Expo would go off without a hitch, we invested plenty of upfront planning time, coordinating important details and smoothing out any issues well in advance. Leading up to the Grand Expo, we managed the event timeline and worked with third-party vendors and the Osthoff’s venue management team to nail down layouts and contracts.
Registrations & Sponsorships
All attendees registered for the Grand Expo via a custom online portal. We managed the registration process and attendee list, assuring a smooth experience for Drexel’s VIPs. To offset event costs and give visibility to some of Drexel’s primary vendors, we also helped secure vendor sponsorships.
Printed Party Materials
To promote Grand Expo to Drexel’s team and connections, we established a promotional calendar that coordinated direct mail, email, and social media communications. Printed pieces, from save the dates and invitations through onsite signage and CEU class materials, enhanced Drexel’s distinctive brand and created a cohesive visual feel for the event.
(Lots of) Event-Day Support
When Grand Expo finally arrived, we provided plentiful hands-on support to ensure that it would go off without a hitch. Everything kicked off with a half-day Vendor Summit, at which the Drexel team presented vendor awards and communicated their strategy and vision for the upcoming year. The main event began the next day with a showcase of more than 50 vendor booths and a full slate of CEU classes. After the professional development time was done, the fun began. Attendees enjoyed a happy hour, dinner, live music (including the UW Marching Band), and casino-style games. Overall, the 2020 Grand Expo was a huge hit!
“Are you looking for a firm that will strategize like they are literally on your team, diving into things you didn’t even know existed, all the while having a good time doing it? Ampersand
would be my first choice for this type of business relationship. They help us ‘Supply Happiness,’ every damn day.”
would be my first choice for this type of business relationship. They help us ‘Supply Happiness,’ every damn day.”
Joel Fleischmann
President, Drexel Building Supply
