The National Association of Independent Lighting Distributors’ 2016 Annual Conference will begin in San Antonio this weekend.

Lighting distributors and manufacturers are headed to San Antonio to network, share ideas and business tactics, and learn how advances in the industry will affect their businesses moving forward.

Association: National Association of Independent Lighting Distributors

Conference: 2016 NAILD Annual Conference

Venue: La Cantera Hill Country Resort

Location: San Antonio, Texas

The 2016 NAILD Annual Conference begins on Sunday evening with a welcome reception. Monday morning will feature the Grand Opening Keynote Session. Jim Morris—the inspiration behind the Walt Disney film The Rookie—will share his story and use it to help attendees navigate their own challenges and achieve their dreams. Also worth noting:

Business casual. NAILD’s Organized Casual Conferences are a way for exhibiting vendors to get in front of new and existing customers in an organized networking format. Exhibitors will have an opportunity for 20-minute, one-on-one introductions with distributors, allowing the parties to get to know each other outside the traditional tradeshow booth setup.

It’s a sprint, not a marathon. The Product Sprint Award honors lighting manufacturers with the best products in five categories. Exhibitors will showcase their newest product during the Product Sprint session on Monday morning. Then, NAILD members can vote onsite for the best in each category. Winners will be announced at Tuesday’s Deep in the Heart of Texas Dinner and Awards Celebration.

Survival tips. During the Distributor Survival Roundtables, attendees will chat in small groups on topics that matter most to them and affect their businesses today and in the future. Among the topics: marketing strategies, ways to increase sales, how to handle manufacturer warranties, and strategies for employee retention.

The Facebook and Twitter conversation will shed some more light on NAILD and the meeting.

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