ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- President George W. Bush will be the Closing General Session speaker for the 2010 NACS Show, which will take place Oct. 5 to 8 at the World Congress Center in Atlanta.
In his two terms as 43rd president of the United States, Bush led the country through eight of the most consequential years in American history, from his leadership in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to a global financial crisis, noted NACS, the association for convenience and petroleum retailing.
Prior to his presidency, Bush served six years as governor of [image-nocss] Texas and was the first governor in state history to be elected to consecutive four-year terms. He earned a bachelor's degree from Yale University and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard University and was often dubbed the country's "first M.B.A. president."
President Bush will be the fourth U.S. president to speak at a NACS event: President Bill Clinton served as the NACS Show 2009 closing speaker, then-former California Gov. Ronald Reagan spoke at the 1975 NACS annual meeting (now called the NACS Show), and then-President George H.W. Bush spoke at the 1992 Public Affairs Conference cosponsored by NACS and three other retail associations.
"The NACS Show brings together the industry'sand the world'stop leaders to share their insights," said NACS vice chairman of convention & events Dave Carpenter, who is president and CEO of J.D. Carpenter Cos. Inc. "Attendees will get a rare opportunity to hear how decisions are made at the highest levels, as well as an insider's perspective of the political landscape just weeks before the mid-term elections."
Registration and housing open today, April 1, for the NACS Show.
Full registration, which includes admission to the general sessions, workshops, expo and the welcome reception, is $275 for NACS members and $425 for all other attendees. This super-saver rate is available through Aug. 13. Other rates apply for one-day registration or expo-only registration. Exhibitor registration will be available in June.
Visitwww.nacsshow.com for the latest information about exhibitors, new products, guest speakers, workshops and networking events.
More than 22,500 attendees were at the NACS Show last year, a 6% increase over 2008 attendance.
In February 2010, the NACS Show was again named the top trade show in the United States for "buying power" and second overall for buying plans, according to the latest annual report on U.S. trade shows developed by Exhibit Surveys Inc.
Founded in 1961 as the National Association of Convenience Stores, Alexandria, Va.-based NACS is the international association for convenience and petroleum retailing, representing more than 2,200 retail and 1,800 supplier member companies. The U.S. convenience store industry, with nearly 145,000 stores across the country, posted $624 billion in total sales in 2008, of which $450 billion was motor fuels sales.
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