Last week the Electrical Association of Philadelphia (EAP) held their biennial Electric Expo for its membership and the broader eastern Pennsylvania / metro Philadelphia marketplace.

The event featured over 200 exhibitors including many manufacturers and some contractor-focused service providers as well as PECO, the local utility. EAP works with its sponsors, and others, to also bus some attendees to the show, simplifying the commute and ensuring a captive audience.

EAP Delivers Buyers to Electric Expo Tradeshow Floor

While Electric Expo attracted almost 3,000 registrants, inclusive of exhibitors, more importantly, 2338 attended (excluding exhibitor staff, so, over 2500 in total) with 1018 declaring themselves as “buyers”, 779 being contractors from almost 400 firms and 683 students and educators. Overall, attendance was up 38% from 2024’s show! So, if a manufacturer or distributor wanted to connect with buyers and influence the next generation … EAP’s Electric Expo was the place to be October 21-22, 2026.

And for the “no shows,” the reality is that’s the life of a contractor. Things come up on a project, or with an employee, that requires adjustment to a day.

The backbone of the exhibitors are the reps, and some lighting agents, in the marketplace who gather many of their manufacturers to share new, and featured, products to over two thousand attendees who walk the tradeshow floor over more than 12 hours spread over two days. Exhibitors had tabletop booths, some had 10×10 exhibits and there were a few manufacturers traveling vehicle displays as well as rep traveling displays. Some manufacturers who do not go to market through reps / lighting agents, also exhibited.

On the show floor, some local distributors – American Electrical Power, Cooper Electric, Manna Supply, Colonial Electric, and Yale Electric – had hospitality booths on the show floor while others walked the show either with customers or in pursuit of customers.

In walking the show, it is evident that the reps were the connectors between contractor personnel and the manufacturers with many welcoming people they knew and walking them to specific tables.

A couple of take aways

• While everyone talks about the labor shortage, and there is an electrician labor shortage, on Day 2 there were many students / apprentices walking the show. They traveled in groups and were attracted to tool manufacturer booths as well as interactive displays and contests. Some reps commented about “reserving giveaways for contractors” but some also said, “next time I need to have giveaways specific to this audience.” While there were not enough to address the labor shortage, it was good to see the “next generation” of electricians as well as companies that are investing in them.
• Feedback from reps about the market is about what you’d expect … relatively “okay” but driven by data centers and a few large projects. Nothing remarkable and no market segments driving demand. The commercial construction market is slow. A few commented that “the lighting market is slow.”
• There was some conversation about the Prysmian / Atkore rep alignment amongst reps I spoke with and also questions about “when” to expect announcements from Hubbell about their expected “rep rationalization / alignment” given their acquisition of NSI. All shared that the marketplace disruption from Prysmian makes this a good time for Hubbell.
• Lonestar Electric Supply. Yes, the $1B+ distributor based in Texas that has been expanding in the southwest, recently acquired a New Orleans-based distributor and acquired Redstone Electric Supply in Alabama, attended the Electric Expo. The company is securing large projects around the country, drop-shipping into territories. I’ve heard of Lonestar wins in upstate New York; Salt Lake City and they shared that they are prospecting in Ohio and other MidAtlantic areas. It should not be inferred that they are “only” cherry-picking from projects as it should also be inferred that they are following key contractors. From a rep perspective, it also begs the question of, “Are you receiving credit for Lonestar projects that are being shipped into your territory?”

Attendees & Exhibitors Rave about Electric Expo 2026

From EAP’s post show survey:

• “This Expo is an incredible experience as both an exhibitor and attendee, truly a fun and energizing event. The foot traffic has increased year after year!” — Exhibitor
• “Wednesday was a phenomenal show day with major customer and end user engagement.” — Exhibitor
• “The Expo was even better than the past!” — Attendee
• “Found some motor lead connectors I will be using from now on.” — Electrical Contractor, Manager
• “We’ll be checking out some offerings from specific manufacturers. These are new items or items that we were not aware of.” — Electrical Contractor, Owner
• “Some new tools as well as some new gadgets to help make the job easier.” — Facility Maintenance Electrician
• “Students reported that they saw equipment and tools they have been learning about. Content came to life. They loved connecting and asking questions. Instructors were thrilled to learn about the new trends in the industry to apply to our classroom, and to connect with employers.” — Trade School Instructor

Here’s a short movie highlighting the show and some booths.

Click here to see photos that EAP took of Electric Expo … and manufacturer booths

EAP Member Advantage Day During Electric Expo

EAP also help a “Member Advantage Day” during the show. It was tailored to only contractor members. Four topical sessions were shared covering:

• Attracting and Retaining People in Electrical Contracting
  • This was a panel discussion with 6 contractors ranging from a 12-person shop to a 500-person company plus Skanska (a GC) and PECO. All commented on challenges to develop and retain talent, the advent of “travelers” (electricians that travel to major projects, most notably data centers). Interesting factoid … at the large Homer City project the developer is buying local properties to convert into housing / campsites for traveling electricians … and some arrive in campers / RVs! (a distributor opportunity to sell different products to support these environments)
• Sales and Marketing ROI: Are Your Efforts Actually Making Money?
• How the Right Technology Protects Your Margins
• AI for Contractors: Using ChatGPT (and others) to Automate Your Business

I presented on the “Right Technologies to Protect Contractor Margins” (really, project profitability) and highlighted the why, some tools contractors can use to improve the efficiency of pre-procurement workflows (estimating, project management, etc.) and then highlighted some procurement / value-added resources that local distributors provided. If you’d like a copy of the presentation, let me know.

The EAP Member Advantage Day was sponsored by Wesco and a local health insurance broker with whom EAP has a preferred relationship. In speaking with Ron Miller, Wesco’s Senior Sales Manager – Philadelphia Construction, he viewed the opportunity to support the local contractor community as an opportunity to highlight Wesco’s commitment to EAP and the market (and yes, he was prospecting!)

This was a lead generation show … lots of traffic, lots of people wandering booths. Hopefully lots of follow-up.

Now, hopefully the reps and local manufacturer representation converts these prospects into opportunities, and sales, to close the year strong!

Exhibitor space sells out every year, and EAP is already reserving space for 2028. Focused on supporting its member reps, lines that have local independent manufacturer reps / lighting agents, get preference and special rates. To reserve / learn more, contact Sarah Hagy.