IBA Annual Conference was given high marks for networking and educational content and proclaimed the BEST Conference ever by attendees. Below images from the Conference are courtesy of Mark Zettler, IBA member and producer of Balloons & Parties Magazine.
Registration decor greeted Conference attendees by day. (decor courtesy of Troy Apprill, Balloonville Productions)
Attendees each received a Welcome Gift complete with popular snacks from the St. Louis area as well as an IBA Gateway to the Future tee.
The IBA logo illuminated on the atrium waterfall greeted attendees by night.
Shuttles transported attendees to J Bucks restaurant downtown for a Betallic sponsored Welcome Party.
The group arrives at J Bucks for an evening of food, fun and relaxation.
Marjorie Burchette of HI-FLOAT, Jan Iiams of Betallic and Troy Apprill of Balloonville Productions chat before dinner.
The decor at J Bucks was provided by Betallic and let everyone know that the "Party's Here"!
David Nelson of Premium Balloon Accessories clowns with little sis' Dede Lijoi also of Premium.
Old friends Elissa Mast of E&R Sales and Joe Abelovitz of Mayflower Distributing do some catching up.
Jim Plutt and Molly Kuhl of Anagram get an earful from Bill Giannasca of Rainbow Balloons.
Marty Fish, Executive Director, IBA and Howard Mullin of Control Plastics find the appetizers.
Barb Brown, Steve Ashburn, and Kathi Leiden of Zephyr Solutions get acquainted with Alice Kaufman of Brody's 800-4-Balloons.
Our gracious photographer, Mark Zettler of Balloons & Parties Magazine takes a break with Robina Bernard of Clik-Clik Systems.
Peggy Williams of burton+BURTON instructs attendees in the design class for Associate members on Wednesday afternoon.
Carmen Ballering of Event Decorating Academy, Susie Alvarez of Amor Boutique, Cheryl Hacker of Valley Cash & Carry, and LaDonna Belcher of Time to Party create a fall arch in the design class.
Instructors Jan Iiams, CBA, of Betallic and Peggy Williams of burton+BURTON move class to the hallway to demonstrate a Link-O-Loon arch.
Marjorie Burchette and Andrea Kash of HI-FLOAT wave from the second floor balcony during a break in their Manufacturers' Showcase schedule on Wednesday.
"Dons" of the balloon weights industry meet at the Pioneer/Anagram Cocktail Reception on Wednesday evening. Pictured are Jules Pollack of Creative Balloons Mfg., Inc., David Nelson of Premium Balloon Accessories, and Howard Mullin of Control Plastics. Christina, Suzy (far left) and Reagan Pollack (far right) are also pictured.
Stunning balloon decor by Troy Apprill filled the atrium for the Cocktail Party and Dinner on Wednesday night.
Alexandra Jacoby and Bret Isaacs of US Balloons arrive at the Pioneer/Anagram Cocktail Party after a whirlwind afternoon of visiting with manufacturers.
Tony McGrath of Silver Rainbow, Susie Alvarez of Amor Boutique, John McGrath of Silver Rainbow, and Emma Alvarez of Amor Boutique gather for the Wednesday evening festivities.
Tracy Terrace of Aerial Bouquets and Annual Conference Chairwoman, thanks all attendees for participating in the conference at the conclusion of dinner on Wednesday night.
Attendees are showered with balloons as Tracy Terrace raises a toast to the industry.
Balloons dripped down for several minutes as attendees bounced balloons around the tables.
Jon McLain of Anagram, Steve Casso of burton+BURTON, Mary Ann Amick of Betallic, and Elissa Mast of E&R Sales are all smiles after the drop.
Attendees gather Thursday morning around speaker Rob Amberg in a small group hands-on workshop to learn about Facebook as a marketing tool.
Each small group workshop learned about a different Social Media application.
This small group workshop is learning about the application for Twitter.
Following workshops, Elissa Mast of E&R Sales provided members with her President's Report and conducted the business meeting. Board members Lee Kaufman of Brody's 800-4-Balloons, Molly Kuhl of Anagram, Tracy Terrace of Aerial Bouquets, Bill Giannasca of Rainbow Balloons, Tim Vlamis of Pioneer Balloon Co., and Marty Fish, Executive Director, look on.
A Bring Balloons banner hung outside the meeting room flanked by balloon decor using Bring Balloons! 18" foils. All Conference decor was created by Troy Apprill of Balloonville Productions.