The AWMA Summit & Business Exchange brings together convenience distributors and their trading partners to learn, network and conduct business. The next event will be held Sept. 8-11, 2008, at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas, Nevada.
 The "Summit" portion of the meeting includes a full day of business sessions, followed by roundtables the next day. The AWMA Business Exchange—ABX—is two days of scheduled meetings between AWMA distributors and their suppliers. The ABX was first introduced at the 2004 meeting in New Orleans and was a great success.
Here are some of the reasons that top decision-makers in the convenience distribution industry attend the Summit:
 Focused business sessions. The educational program of the AWMA Summit homes in on the issues that affect convenience distributors. Topics at past Summits have included tobacco industry analysis, distributor profitability, looks at the U.S. economy and elections, trends in convenience stores, and much more.
Great networking. One of the main reasons that attendees come back year after year to the Summit is for the numerous networking opportunities at meals, receptions and breaks. Compared to trade shows that attract thousands of people, the Summit offers a much more intimate environment for networking, hosting approximately 300 to 325 attendees.
Productive meetings between distributors and manufacturers. At the September 2004 Summit, AWMA introduced the AWMA Business Exchange (ABX) meetings. The response to these meetings was overwhelmingly positive. Both distributors and manufacturers alike appreciated the opportunity to meet with top decision-makers in each others companies. Much of the time in these meetings was devoted to discussing problems and introducing new products and incentive programs.
For more information on the Summit/ABX, contact Bob Pignato at 800-482-2962, ext. 642, or robertp@awmanet.org.
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