Photos: 2015© Amiee Stubbs Photography. www.amieestubbs.com

Thanks to an untimely snow and ice storm, the HPBExpo in Nashville might have played out like the forlorn lyrics of a blues song. But Music City turned out to be music to the ears of barbecue manufacturers and dealers at the trade show held March 3-7. Attendance was up 60 percent, the vibe was positive, and business was brisk in what is being called the best kick-off to the barbecue selling season in a long time.

“The opening day started a little slowly due to the weather, but after that we had great traffic,” said Nick Bansal of barbecue accessories company, Montana Grills. “The show was really good for us.”

Jason Elder, owner of Vin de Flame, crafters of unique Outdoor Room products made from repurposed wine barrels, said, “This show has been night and day different from Salt Lake City. We’ve seen lots of great people here.”

“The show’s been very good,” echoed Jeff Straubel, president of Summerset Grills. “Attendance is better, the economy is improving and dealers are actually selling product now. We’ve been busy in our booth.”

Bruce Bjorkman of MAK Grills shared the sentiment. “We’ve picked up more dealers this year than the last four years combined. The show’s been excellent. We were high-fiving each other all the time.”

So were the folks in the Bull Outdoor Products booth, according to Frank Mello, vice president Sales and Marketing. “We can’t miss this show,” he said. “If you’re in the barbecue business and you’re not here, it either means you don’t care about this group of dealers or you’re not doing well. Either way, it’s not a good message to send to customers.”    

Show Highlights

Intrepid dealers, eager to get the barbecue fires burning after a long, cold winter in many parts of the country, packed the education sessions and left with practical strategies on how to grow their business. Attendees learned about effective promotions that sell more Outdoor Rooms; techniques for cooking competition-style barbecue; and ways to tap into the “home-gating” tailgating trend to boost late-season sales, among other topics.

A little cold and snow couldn’t keep folks out of the outdoor burn area, where they saw grills, smokers and other barbecue gear in action and sampled everything from sausage to steak. There is no truer testament to a grill’s performance and quality than cooking in single-digit wind chills, and Saber Edge, the Downtown Grill, Primo Ceramic Grills and others in the outdoor booths proved they were up to the challenge.

The Big Green Egg booth was jammed, as usual.

Hundreds of Expo attendees braved the chill for the Big Green Egg-sponsored HPBExpo Tailgate & Cook-off Party Thursday evening that pitted four of Nashville’s top chefs in a battle for best dish cooked on the company’s kamado-style cookers. During the event, barbecue industry veteran Ron LaRocca, a sales and marketing consultant who has helped countless companies successfully bring their grilling-related products to market, was presented the Donna H. Myers Barbecue Leadership Award.

On Friday evening Hearth & Home magazine hosted the Vesta Awards honoring innovative hearth, barbecue and outdoor living products. The Saber Edge grill captured the Vesta award for Best-in-Show Outdoor Room Products. (Check out www.vestaawards.com for a complete listing of all Vesta winners.)

Trend Watch

Kamados: Several key barbecue trends emerged from Expo. Probably the biggest is the continued reign of kamados as the hottest category in the industry. Category leader Big Green Egg had a packed house throughout the show, according to Jodi Burson, director of Brand Enhancement. Interest was also high at Primo Ceramic Grills, Saffire Grill Company, Caliber Range Corporation, Grill Dome, Modern Home Products and Onward Manufacturing.

Among the kamado newcomers, Vision Grills introduced its feature-packed Professional C Series exclusively for specialty dealers, which comes standard with built-in electric starter, grill stand, side table, tiered grates, lid shock-absorber and diffuser plate.

Louisiana Grills also introduced a feature-packed, charcoal-fired kamado to complement its line of pellet grills. “We now have products in the number-one and number-two most exciting categories in the industry,” says Dan Watson, director of Sales.

Pellet Grills: Watson is spot-on about wood pellet grills; the category continues to gain momentum and options were plentiful at Expo. Camp Chef added two models to its line-up, the large-sized, Vesta Award-winning Lux with a patented clean-out system, and a smaller, entry-priced unit designed for pellet newbies.

The MAK Grills booth.

Dealers and prospective dealers kept the booths hopping at MAK Pellet Grills, Louisiana Grills, Memphis Wood Fired Grills, Traeger Wood Pellet Grills, Kuma Stoves, and England Stove Works, manufacturers of Smoke-n-Sear pellet grills.

The new Boneless Grill, a Vesta finalist, is one of the most innovative – and at up-to-$11,000, one of the most expensive – pellet grills on the market. The premium, marine-grade, stainless-steel unit combines programmable touch-screen controls with iPhone App capability, segregated temperature zones, and volcanic stones to boost cooking temperatures.

High-Tech: Boneless Grill is just one of the examples of the growing high-tech grill trend. MAK Grills is another. Bjorkman says the MAK Grills Mobile, a Wi-Fi operating system that remotely controls, programs and monitors temperatures, cook times, smoke levels and more, is now one of the most-requested features on the company’s pellet grills.

The new, Vesta Award-winning Saber Edge incorporates problem-solving, app-enabled technology that assists consumers with the tasks that focus groups identified as most important to them: monitoring propane levels; indicating when a burner is inadvertently left on after cooking; access to recipes and cooking techniques; and links to customer support and other practical services.

The Fervor Icon 365, a new grill distributed by Alfresco Home, combines smart-technology with other user-friendly features such as a glass window in the hood, improved ignition, and a built-in trash rack. “Technology is our generation’s hot button, but it still has to enhance the food and flavor,” says Joseph Cilio, company president and CEO.

Top-of-the-Line: Several years ago, in response to a weakened economy, value-priced grills emerged as an important industry trend, with companies such as Summerset, Coyote, Bull, R H Peterson Co, Napoleon, Twin Eagles and more introducing quality, high-performing grills with streamlined features and reasonable prices. Now, with the economy improving, many of these same companies and others are introducing ultra-premium grill models in hopes of attracting top-end buyers willing to pay top-dollar.

As Doug Pryor of Twin Eagles explains the trend, “There is business at the top end of the price range. We aim to grow it by offering options for those consumers who can afford to spend more and are willing to do so.” To that end, Twin Eagles launched a new “wow-factor” model at Expo, incorporating innovative features such as control-panel light indicators, built-in fans, an improved rotisserie, and a stunning new hood design.

Bull launched its top-of-the-line Elite Series exclusively for specialty dealers with upgraded design, grill grates, rotisserie system, infrared burner and other features.

Summerset introduced its “American Muscle Grill,” a dual-fuel, five-burner, heavy-duty, stainless “macho” grill with a design inspired by the front-end of a Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.

A colorful Weber-Stephen display.

Smoking and Traditional Barbecue: In counterpoint to the high-tech and high-end trends is a growing movement toward back-to-basics barbecue. Thanks to television programs such as “BBQ Pitmasters” and “Man, Fire, Food,” interest in smoking and low-and-slow traditional barbecuing is soaring. The industry is responding with a host of great products that make it easier for consumers to try these techniques at home.

The Gateway Drum Smoker, developed by barbecue cook-off competitor Tim Scheer, is a barrel-style smoker designed to cook competition barbecue in a fraction of the time. Vin de Flame has created a smoker grill inside an oak wine barrel, and Smokehouse Products offers easy-to-operate electric smokers, as well as the Smoke Chief, which turns any grill into a cold smoker.

The Smokenator, an easy-to-use, patented device that fits inside the base of a standard charcoal kettle, turning it into a smoker, has been dubbed the “working man’s smoker.” The Ribalizer is even more low-tech. The rack system uses a standard disposable aluminum pan as the base and one for the lid to turn out smoke-kissed, fall-off-the-bone, competition style ribs on a gas grill.

Also for use on a gas grill are accessory products such as the Smokerin by Montana Grills, and the Amazing Tube Smoker, which hold and burn wood chips or wood pellets on the cooking grid to create that sought-after smoky flavor profile.

There is no doubt specialty retailers who attended HPBExpo 2015 in Music City left with a wealth of useful ideas and a collection of exciting new products to grow their barbecue business back home. Manufacturers left enthusiastic about the feedback, sales, dealer recruitment and other positive results they experienced.

We suspect all were whistling a happy tune.