The 2016 TOC Europe exhibition just recently took place in Hamburg, Germany where we had a group of Tideworks delegates from our offices in both Seattle and Rotterdam. This was my first experience attending the Europe show having only previously been to the TOC Americas in Panama both in 2012 and 2015. In fact, this was my first time in Europe altogether! I can safely say the small taste got my wanderlust going. I’m taking any and all recommendations now…Iceland, Croatia, Spain, Prague? Okay, back to the conference!
It’s always a great time exhibiting at the TOC conferences, not only to meet prospective customers and partners, but also to network and connect with our existing customers who are in the area. We saw folks from Doyle Shipping Group (Ireland), CSX Intermodal Terminals (Florida…okay, not technically a part of Europe), Luka Koper (Slovenia), Baltic Container Terminal (Poland) and more. It also gives us the opportunity to catch up with our friends at the many media outlets represented there (Container Management, Port Strategy, World Cargo News, and World Port Development, to name just a few). In addition, we get to meet face-to-face with our colleagues from Rotterdam which is always a nice treat.
I think my favorite moment during the TOC was when a few of my colleagues gave an on-the-fly presentation to some visitors who came by our booth. Even though I’ve been at Tideworks just a little over 4 years now, I still find it fun to listen in on those presentations and hear the knowledge from those who have been with the company for so many years. Another had to be spending time with our customers over dinner – that’s not something I get to do very often, especially with our customers in different countries!
And in case you were curious, my favorite moment outside of the conference was going to a party in a windmill! Yes, you read that correctly. We made a pit stop in the Netherlands before heading home and had the opportunity to attend a local business association function in the very quaint village of Geervliet, courtesy of our Regional Manager for Europe, Gert Kabbedijk. It was straight out of a movie. I can almost still taste the raw herring I tried at the event – it was opening day of herring season! Although the party was a lot of fun, I think I’ll leave that particular memory of the evening in Europe.
We’re looking forward to exhibiting next year in Amsterdam! Before then, be sure to visit Tideworks at the TOC Americas in Cancun, Mexico at booth E24.
See you there!
Pictured: Bernisse Windmill in Geervliet, Netherlands.
Pictured: Erin Leahy, Marketing Coordinator