After more than four decades in Suffern, NY the World Fishing & Outdoor Expo was originally expected to begin a new chapter this month at New Jersey’s Convention and Exposition Center in Edison. Regrettably, in an email to vendors on December 7, 2023, show manager Tod Alberto announced that they were cancelling the event. “Our efforts to move the show to a better location and change the dates have not resulted in what we hoped,” Alberto said.
Commonly referred to as the Suffern Show, the expo was founded by outdoor writer and avid sportsman Paul Fuller in 1978. Fuller sold the event to the American Sportfishing Association in 2005; the event was then taken over by the National Marine Manufacturers Association in 2015 and ultimately picked up by SportShows LLC which today manages the Chicagoland Fishing, Travel & Outdoor Expo, as well as the Saltwater Fishing Expo at Edison (March 15-17).
According to Alberto who has been with the show management team since 2010, although geared to saltwater fishing exhibitors the Saltwater Fishing Expo will have some freshwater and hunting exhibits participating. “There is quite a bit of crossover for saltwater anglers into both hunting and freshwater fishing,” he said.
“We could not be more disappointed to see this historic 43-year-old event cancelled,” Alberto said of the World Fishing & Outdoor Expo, while adding that his team plans to continue looking at other venues with more favorable date options. “We still think there is a need for a quality fishing, hunting, and outdoor sports show in the Northeast; something that is missing in that market,” he noted.
For more information go to sportshows.com.
