Graphics of the Americas Expo & Conference (GOA) reports its 39th annual show was an “outstanding success.” Reports indicate that exhibit space and attendance grew by 23% and 14%, respectively, over 2013 figures. More than 8,300 people attended GOA 2014 from 70 countries. GOA was held February 27-March 1, 2014, at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami, FL, USA.

“Graphics of the Americas 2014 was an outstanding success,” says George Ryan, GOA president. “Numerous accolades from exhibitors and attendees continue to come in, describing GOA 2014 once again as a ‘buying show’ and a great way to start off the year in an improving economy. The attitude of the exhibitors and attendees was very positive about the future and it reaffirms the 2013 GOA study that the economies in North America, Latin America and the Caribbean are growing at a robust rate of 2.6% and 3.1%, respectively. We are optimistic that the printing industry is at a turning point, and that is this is the start of a robust turnaround after several challenging years,” Ryan says.

GOA Education
A popular destination for the latest industry education, 1,250 people participated in GOA’s educational programs, including 360 attending the Spanish seminars.

The keynote by Peter Muir, president of Bizucate, Inc. provided a futuristic view of “Where will Your Profits Come From Tomorrow.” His “hands-on” examples of how data coupled with print increased revenues ten-fold for customers provided an insightful look into the future of print into integrated marketing campaigns.

Twenty Digital Classroom Live seminars were presented by the American Graphics Institute (AGI), where seminars were offered for prepress, production, digital printing, sales, marketing, management and wide format printing. 

Game Changers Debut
The first-ever Game Changer showcase at GOA 2014 honored manufacturers and developers who are building products and machinery that will have “lasting and positive efffect” on the industry. The following have been given the special distinction of being a GOA 2014 Game Changer:

HP Indigo 10000 Digital Press
Enfocus Connect ALL
Printware LLC iJetPress Digital Inkjet Printer with iJet Color Workflow
Nilpeter FB-3300 flexo-press
MGI Digital Graphic Technology JETvarnish 3D and JETvarnish 3D Twin w/iFoil
Ricoh Critical Communications Solutions Suite
Best Booth Award Winners – Konica Minolta and PrintGuard – This year, the GOA Trade Show Council awarded Konica Minolta and PrintGuard with the “best booth” based on the following five criteria: creativity and originality; use of the company’s featured product and images in its booth design; booth staff’s enthusiasm, friendliness and interaction with attendees; promotional giveaways; and overall appearance and experience.