Speaker Spotlight

Let's talk speakers! Seminars, Keynotes, and the new Lunch & Learn are all opportunities to expand your knowledge at our expo. Allyson talks through the topics and gives you some inside information to our breakout sessions. 

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Welcome back to Fuse to Finale, the official NFA podcast where we help you get the most out of your expo experience. I'm Allison Cowgill, and today we are talking about one of the biggest opportunities that people sometimes overlook at the expo, which are the seminars. And while all of those things are incredible, the seminars are where you can actually take home and really invest in yourself, your business, and your future in the industry. Whether you're a retailer, distributor, manufacturer, hobbyist, shooter, or someone brand new to fireworks, there are sessions this year that are specifically designed to give you practical ideas that you can actually take home and use in your business. So today we're going to walk through what you can expect if you're attending our seminars. One of my favorite things about the Expo is that every attendee has a different reason for coming. Some are here to watch the demos and see what products they want to buy for the following year. Some are networking, some are looking for the latest technology, others are trying to grow their business. And so the seminar program is designed to support all of these goals. These aren't sale pitches. We designed our product spotlight presentations specifically to showcase new products that people are wanting to get out in front of customers. This is not that. These are opportunities to hear from experienced professionals, industry leaders, and subject matter experts who are sharing real-world knowledge. Let's start with leadership. Running a fireworks business today is more complex than ever. Hiring, retaining employees, managing teams, planning for growth, leading through change. This year's management focus sessions are focusing on practical leadership skills that can help businesses of every size become even more efficient and more successful. We are so excited to have Beth Tremell, licensed psychologist from Indiana, coming to speak to us for two different sessions. Her first session is Leading Across Generations, Building Trust, Morale, and Momentum in Family Businesses. This session is going to help attendees better understand the dynamics that influence cross-generational relationships and create a foundation for more productive conversations. Rather than labeling one generation as right or wrong, participants will learn how to identify differences, build a mutual respect, and use the strengths of each generation to move the business forward. Best's second session is titled What to Say When It's Hard: Communication Tools for High Stakes Leadership Moments. This session is designed to give attendees practical language that they can use when navigating conflict, change, generational differences, role confusion, accountability, and other sensitive leadership situations. The focus here is not simply on what leaders should do, but rather receiving examples of what you can actually say when the conversation matters the most. Whether you're managing five employees or 50, there will be something that you can take back and use in your business. If you've ever wondered how to reach more customers without necessarily spending more money, you'll definitely want to check out our marketing seminars this year. Our marketing seminars include one social media and one packaging seminar. The social media seminar is Mastering Social Media for Fireworks Businesses with Joel Robinson. Whether you've got a retail store, wholesale operation, or a manufacturing facility, a strong social media presence is essential. In this session with Joel, we'll look at what makes firework content social media successful. We'll dive into back-end analysis, proper video capture, navigating platform rules and restrictions, and using customer-submitted footage to build a loyal brand following. In Andy Webb's packaging seminar, we'll talk about how packaging decisions affect much more than how a product looks on the shelf. This seminar will show manufacturers and importers how better case labels, seaside UPC placements, reliable QR codes, assortment packaging, product data, and thoughtful label orientation can all improve warehouse efficiency, speed checkout, reduce damage, and help retailers sell their products more effectively. The fireworks industry is becoming increasingly more digital, and these sessions are designed to help businesses stay competitive in today's market. Running a successful retail operation requires much more than simply just stocking great products. So we really wanted to find some seminars that will help improve your operations in your retail. So you will find seminars covering retail best practices, insurance essentials, importing 101, which is going to cover the basics of importing, who it's designed for, and how it can be done correctly. Our friends at PGI are presenting a seminar about how proper training can improve your business. So these presentations are packed with ideas that can improve efficiency and profitability. In addition to our traditional business topics, we are offering specialized opportunities throughout the week. So, new for 2026 is that we are introducing lunch and learns for those that want to continue to expand their knowledge during lunchtime. Our first lunch and learn is titled Discovering Zhangxi Fireworks. So Zhangxi is one of the most important fireworks production regions in China with a strong industry base in Wanzhai and Shang Li. Through this session, we are hoping to help U.S. importers, wholesalers, retailers, and industry partners better understand the production strength, the export capacity, and potential cooperation opportunities between the two markets. Our second lunch and learn is titled All About AppSet. So we are going to explore the American Pyrotechnics Safety and Education Foundation and their mission, what they do, who they help, and what they can offer to the industry to help us promote the safe use of fireworks. And of course, fireworks comes with an ever-changing regulatory environment. Our keynotes are designed to give you the most recent regulatory information. We are planning to have the ATF back this year as well as FIMSA. We are also hoping to give you some information regarding the CPSC's new e-filing procedures as well as a 2027 seasonal outlook. These keynotes can help attendees stay informed on current requirements while preparing for future changes affecting the industry. If regulations impact your business, and for most of us they do, these are definitely worth attending. All of our seminars are given by experienced industry vets and provide an opportunity to gain some professional education while you're already attending the expo. So let me give you a piece of advice. Don't try to attend everything. Don't feel like you have to go to each seminar. Take a few minutes before the expo begins and look through the schedule, look at the expo guide, read the blurbs, circle the sessions or note the sessions that align with your goals. All of them will be listed in our app that we have with the blurbs about what they are. And so you'll be able to pick and choose which ones you want to go to. Ask yourself, what problem am I trying to solve? What skill do I want to improve? What information could make my business even better next year? And having a plan will get you so much more value through the week. Another tip that I would share is that even though each day there are two sessions at each time, I would recommend dividing and conquering. So if you're coming to the expo with a team or more than one other person, figure out where the best use of your time can be. If you have four people in one seminar together, that's great. You're all hearing that information, but you could divide and conquer, go to different seminars and come back and share notes. And that way your entire team is getting the entire experience. One thing that people don't often realize is that seminars are also an awesome networking opportunity. You'll be sitting next to people from across the country who face a lot of the same challenges that you do. Some of the best conversations happen after the presentation ends. So introduce yourself, ask questions, exchange business cards. You never know what connection might lead to your next great idea. The NFA Expo is not just about seeing what's new. It's about becoming better at what you do. So the seminars are one of the best investments that you can make during the week. You're going to leave with new ideas, new connections, and practical knowledge that you can apply long after the expo wraps up. So be sure to look over the schedule, read the blurbs, figure out which seminars are going to be a great fit for you, and make sure to make time for those because you will be so glad that you did. Thanks for joining me for another episode of Fuse to Finale. As always, we will continue helping you prepare for our expo one episode at a time. If you haven't already, please subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts, Apple, YouTube, Spotify, Amazon, all the things so that you don't miss any upcoming episodes. We'll see you next time. And remember, everyone sees the finale and you're starting to notice the fuse.