New England Grows Announces 2008 Plans

New England Grows, a green industry exposition and educational conference in the Northeast, has announced that Christopher Zane, owner of Conn.-based Zanes Cycles, will give the keynote address on the opening day of the 2008 event. New England Grows will take place Feb. 6-8, at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in Boston, Mass.

The keynote is new to the 15-year-old educational conference. As owner of one of the largest retail bicycle stores in the nation, Zane will reflect on his successful business model, according to New England Grows. A 23-year veteran of the retail bicycle industry at age 39, Zane will share his unique approach to marketing. Among the strategies Zane will describe are continual learning, a customer’s lifetime value, guerrilla marketing, bootstrapping, community relations, cost controlled customer service and image branding.

New England Grows is also launching a new session entitled “The Essentials of Plant ID” in 2008. This innovative educational session will be followed by a hands-on plant identification challenge on the trade show floor. Many exhibitors will display plant material at their booths for identification purposes. Conference attendees will receive a list of booths to visit as well as an answer form to complete and return to extension experts at the Great Ideas pavilion. The program will conclude with a prize drawing at the pavilion for participants who have correctly identified all of the plants on the tour.

Visit www.negrows.org for more information.