Joel Viera & Alec Ward - WRE 2023 - Here we Come! - PODCAST TRANSCRIPTION

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Joel Viera and Alec Ward from the Western States Roofing Contractors Associations (WSRCA). You can read the interview below or listen to the podcast. 

Intro/Outro: Welcome to Roofing Road Trips with Heidi. Explore the roofing industry through the eyes of a long-term professional within the trade. Listen for insights, interviews, and exciting news in the roofing industry today.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Hello and welcome to another Roofing Road Trips from RoofersCoffeeShop. My name is Heidi Ellsworth and hi, I am here today to talk about one of my favorite things during the year, and that's a Western Roofing Expo. As some of you may know, I've been involved with Western States for a very long time, most of my career. I love these guys. So we invited Joel Viera and Alec Ward to join us today so we could talk about the upcoming show in September and really find out all the inside news so you can all get registered and we can all see each other in Vegas. So gentlemen, welcome to the show.

Joel Viera: Thanks for having us.

Alec Ward: Hey, Heidi. Good to be here.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Love it, love it, love it. Well, let's start out with some introductions. So Alec, let's start with you. If you could introduce yourself, what you do with Western States, that would be great.

Alec Ward: Sure, so my name's Alec Ward. I am the director of Membership and Trade Show at Western States. I started out doing just a membership and then roles change and I help out with the expo primarily. Most of my job throughout the year is just helping manage the exhibitors, getting them signed up for booths and just helping through the process of getting to the show and doing it successfully.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I love it. I love it. I know it's a big job. It's a really big job. Joel, can you introduce yourself, tell us what you do there and give us some information about the Western States Roofing Contractors Association overall?

Joel Viera: Yeah, sure. Thanks, Heidi. My name is Joel Viera. I'm the Executive director of the Western States Roofing Contractors Association. I've been here 22 years now. Originally, I had the role, many roles... Basically, I've been membership and the foundation coordinator raising funds for scholarships and the expo, all various roles with the expo. Now, the executive director. I oversee the association, the volunteers, the staff, just make sure everything's running smoothly. Western States was formed in 1974 with a contractor in mind, always trying to do things to make the contractor's job easier and more beneficial for them. We've been working on some great things at Western States this last year. We've been putting a lot of focus on our safety committee. Right before this show here, sometime between this recording and the show, we're going to be releasing a free app to all of our members.

The Safety Companion app, which will make your safety recording and logging much, much easier. Like I said, we're just here for the contractor. We've got 26 board members. They're all roofing contractors. We're all in various committees trying to make things better for roofing contractors in the industry. So if you've got any time on your hands, check out wsrca.com, check out all our benefits. If you are a member, thank you so much for being a member. If you're not, take a step in with us. We promise you you'd enjoy it. Very affordable in comparison to a lot of other association dues. Again, we're not here to make money. We're here to help the industry. So like I said, if you're interested in taking a look at wsrca.com or giving us a call in the office, we'd be happy to help.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I tell you what the value, so much value, and there's some great podcasts and videos that we've done in the past talking about that. So if you're out there, check out the membership and plus if you're members, you're going to get a discount on the Western Roofing Expo, which is great. And so Alec, why don't you tell us all about the Western Roofing Expo, a little bit of history and just kind give us the elevator speech?

Alec Ward: Right. Well, like Joel said, yeah, started out in 1974, just a small group of roofers that we're just noticing the unique problems that roofers in the West face. And 1974 is also the first expo, the tiny little thing, and since they're almost 50 years from now, it's become this almost 200 company-wide thing that we have going on with the show.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: It's one of the biggest shows in the industry.

Joel Viera: This is number 49, Heidi, number 49.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Number 49. I cannot believe it. It is such a great show and such a rich history. I love it. Okay, Alec, what are you excited about for this year's Western Roofing? What are some of the highlights?

Alec Ward: Well, for me personally, it's always just seeing people that I only see at the show every year, get to see them there. People that sign up for become members back when I was just starting out eight years ago and seeing them continue to come. Same with the companies too. We have these small companies that joined the show and just watching them grow. That's my favorite thing. This year especially, one thing I'm looking forward to seeing is Beacon's got the biggest booth we've ever had on the show, and so I'm just curious to see what're going to do with that. Is it a 20 by 50 booth? Or no, no. It's even bigger than that. It's like 30 by 50, something like that. Very, very big area.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Well after what they did at the IRE. Yeah, who knows. Let's be watching that. Joel, what are some of the things you're excited about with this year's show?

Joel Viera: I'm always really proud of the educational offerings that we offer. We have 26 seminars over spanning over two days. They do not run concurrent with the trade show floor, so all of our exhibitors and our attendees have the time to spend with each other, but we've got seminars from everything from technical to legal to safety to sales, and maximizing your sales team and how to run your business better. We've got the young roofing professionals have a round table about getting older and basically the pitfalls that they've experienced, sharing their stories. And then we have a mimosa breakfast with the National Women in Roofing, which is a great event, really great to partner up with them. So I would say educating serious contractors. It's Las Vegas, so we're always going to have a good draw. We're going to have a lot of people there, but I always really enjoy quality over quantity. Myself and the folks that are out there wanting to learn and better their businesses, those are the people that excite me most and we really try to deliver ROI to those people first and foremost.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, I love the National Women Roofing every year. I think that's great. And also, the educational classes, and Alec, I have to agree with you. It's all about the friendships and the networking there, but I also have to say I get really excited about the Davis Foundation and what they do with the golfing and the shooting and then the auction. So I know we're going to get to that in just a minute, but just when I think about what am I excited about, those are some of the things top of my mind too. But for people who haven't been there before, Alec, what are some of the tips you would have for first timers to really maximize their experience?

Alec Ward: The first thing I would do is I would get in your phone and go to the app store, type in WRE 2023 and get the official app for the expo. On there, it's sponsored by RoofersCoffeeShop. It's sponsored by Dataforma. It's got a whole list of all our exhibitors, and the best part about is you can select which ones you want to see. Once you do that, it populates the trade show floor map, so you can navigate your whole way through there. Seeing exhibitors you want to see most and make sure you don't miss a thing.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I use it every year. Tim loves it. He uses it all the time. He loves your app. Trust me, he has a big opinion about apps, so he loves the WRE, but RoofersCoffeeShop, so proud to be a sponsor on the app. And I would say not just first timers, everybody should download it, everybody should use it. It is so powerful and really can make your event a lot smoother where you're going. You've already kind of got it mapped out ahead of time. Joel, you've been doing this forever, 22 years. What are some of your tips for newcomers?

Joel Viera: I would say for newcomers, especially Western States members, to take a little bit of time and visit the member lounge or the Western States booth during the show, the member lounge, we always have a little bit of breakfast and coffee and a place to just relax and recharge yourself. And it's always a small setting where you could meet some of our board members and other volunteers and just other members. One of the biggest things you can do by being involved in any association is networking and finding your peers who have similar successes and failures and just talking it out and learning from others, you can really go far. The Western States booth, same idea. You could really learn about... We have a lot of membership benefits that people don't even realize that we have. And so you can talk to our staff or any of our board members that are in the booth.

We have a great view of the demo stage and the Roofing Games and Roofers Feud from our booth, and we've got a beer, if you'd like a beer, you just want to take a load off. There's not a lot of places to sit on a trade show floor. So you could actually sit on our trade show floor booth and hang out or go to our lounge. And like I said, just get to know your fellow members because you may have one connection that can make all the difference in the world. So getting on the trade show floor, seeing the products and services are great, but just if you ever need to take a load off, please come to our booth. We'll give you a beer and introduce you to some of our products and services and things that we do.

One of the great things about Western states we're really proud of is all these additional services that we've got for our members, none of them cost extra. It's all-inclusive in your dues. So we're a true nonprofit and the money that we make, if we have a successful year, it goes right back into our members. Always looking to do more different things, more safety, more technical, more legal. We've got a great team of consultants and advisors to help our members. So that's what I would say. Get to know some people, get to know Trent Cotney, get to know Steve Zasadil, get to know Ken Klein. Get to know some of the board members that feel your pains and can share their experiences with you.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, they're pretty awesome. I can tell you I'm lucky to be on the associated advisory board and I get to hang out with all those board members. They're so smart. They have great businesses, so I love going by the members lounge. I also say come by a Roofer's Coffee Shop because we're going to have a live sound stage, so we're going to be doing videos from there. We're going to be working with people, and then you have to look at all the fun things that you do. So let's just talk real quick, Alec, maybe you can start us out on the Roofing Games and Roofers Feud. What are they and how should people get involved?

Alec Ward: Right, so Roofing Games, that's a really high energy event that's on day two of the show at the very end, and it's sponsored by Malarkey and it brings some of the fastest shinglers in the Western region to compete against one another to see who can get the job done the quickest. We also have some spots open for those that want to try to challenge them too. So if there's anyone out there that wants to try their hand at this, I'd recommend just reaching out to us directly. You can go on to info@wsrca.com and we'll get you in touch with Malarkey and see if we can get you up there to compete.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Get you signed up. Show us how fast you are.

Joel Viera: We do have a three-time, three-peat champion currently from Holland Roofing in Anchorage, Alaska, and I'm almost certain he will come and defend his title. And so if you think you could just get on one of those roofs and beat him, you're probably not. You might have to do a little practicing. He takes great pride in his craft and his speed, and so that'll be a lot of fun this year, looking to see if anyone could dethrone him.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I love it.

Joel Viera: I have my doubts.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, well, I know, and this is going to put the challenge out there. Everybody likes a little competition, a little bit of a challenge. And what's Roofers Feud?

Alec Ward: So Roofers Feud, as opposed to the Roofing Games, which is more like a test of your roofing athleticism. The Roofer's Feud is more testing your roofing knowledge, so it's more of a trivia based competition. Trent Coney and John Kenny, they'll ask questions on roofing history, materials, you name it, just things like that. See who's the smartest roofer out there.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And that takes place at the end of day two also. Right?

Joel Viera: Yeah. We really try to just... Sometimes at the end of the day on a trade show, it can get a little dry and even walking around and you're tired and you maybe have seen everybody, we try to keep things light and fun and do things that other shows aren't necessarily doing to try to really make ourselves stand out and have a really great vibe about the show to where it's not just educational, but it's fun and entertaining. So we take great pride in trying to deliver on both of those areas.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: You do a great job of it. It's really great. It's really a solid two-day show where people are staying. They're on the show floor, they're in the membership lounge. It's great. But those two days of the trade show are awesome. But the day before the show opens is Monday. Monday now? No, Sunday is it Sunday back again? I can't remember.

Joel Viera: [inaudible].

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Saturday. Fun Saturday. That's it. And that is all the great events for the Davis Foundation. Again, I'm a trustee on there. So are you, Joel. I'm so proud of that. And the fundraisers that go on that Saturday are just great. Can you give everybody a little bit of around that and how they can get involved?

Joel Viera: Absolutely. We have a golf and a sporting clays tournament the morning of Saturday morning, the 23rd. They're both great events. The golf tournament is at Revere Golf Club, which is an outstanding golf club in the Henderson Hills overlooking the Strip. It's a challenging course, but fun at the same time. It's in great condition. We sold out last year, and so that's 128 golfers. We have great prizes. Both tournaments are sponsored by Beacon. And over in Boulder Ridge. We've got the Pro Gun Club, and we have our sporting clays tournament, and that's great fun as well. It's in desert terrain. You're shooting at rabbits and birds, I believe they're called. Not real rabbits and birds, everybody.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, not real stuff.

Joel Viera: Clay version, but it's a great time. They have these four person golf carts and everyone goes out and has a great time. They come back in, they have a great lunch. And again, it's a great opportunity to network and just have fun. Sometimes you just need to go out and meet people and just do what you enjoy. So that's the morning events for the Davis Foundation. In the evening, it's our first time, we're called the Wild West Welcome Event and Auction. Everyone is encouraged to dress up in their best cowboy and cowgirl garb. We will have prizes for the best dress. Last year we had some outstanding costumes come through. Some maybe weren't even costumes, just real life cowboy, cowgirl attire. And then we have a live and silent auction that takes place. The live auction takes place that Saturday night, and then the silent auction takes place for a few weeks and then closes at the end of the show. But the trustees all participate. Myself, Heidi, Dennis Ryan, Bill Bailey, Greg Bloom, and Chuck Chapman.

We all put on a pretty good production. Like I said, we have some live auctioneers. We've got food and drink. It's a really, really great event to absolutely for a great cause. Every year, Davis gives out $50,000 in scholarships, which has got to be one of the highest in the industry. We're really, really proud of that. And it takes a village, so it takes a lot of coordination from the staff and from our trustees, but it also can't happen without the great generosity of our donors and our auction bidders. We have some great items as usual. We've got a lot of jewelry. K. Post and Trent Cotney donated a lot of jewelry. We've got some luxury purses and accessories. Tom Asbury donated a few of those things. I can't name them all, but Eagle Roofing Products-

Heidi J. Ellsworth: We got some great trips.

Joel Viera: Eagle Roofing Products has their fin and feather, which is a hunting and fishing trip in Idaho, which is so exclusive, a priceless item. Beacon always provide us with a great... I think it used to be a trip to New York, but now I think it's a trip, like several choices that you could make. So yeah, we've got some great items all go to a great cause. It's a lot of work for everyone involved, but at the end of the day when we're all done, it feels so good to see 10 scholarship winners up there. Colleges, for us, folks that did it 20 years ago, 25 years ago, it was somewhat more affordable. It's so expensive now. So these scholarships really go a long way for the education and everyone that applies as a child of a member or a lot of these people work for the people in the office or the people that are actually up on the roofs that don't make a lot of money. So it's a great way for us to give back and reward these people for their hard work and invest in their future.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: A number of the students actually come to the event. They actually are introduced before the auction starts, but we get to meet them. They get to be a part of everything. They get to be you part of the trade show. So it's just really embracing that next generation and helping them to get the education that they need. It's such a great cause and so much fun. It's so much fun. It's a fun way to raise money. So, okay, we kind of talked about the beginning, the trade show floor, the education you mentioned, Joel, but I also would like to just... And Joel, maybe we can start with you, any special speakers, keynotes or anything like that that folks should be aware of?

Joel Viera: Yeah, just starting with the beginning of things. Our seminars, like I said, we have 26 of those. We're always proud of the three services that Western States provide, and that'd be Trent Coney as our general counsel and legal advisor. Ken Klein is our technical advisor and Steve Zasadil is our safety consultant. All three have seminars on Sunday and Monday. So just kind of showcasing their knowledge and what they're doing for our members is always an interesting thing. And then the legislative luncheon is always great. We've got Craig Brightup, who's our political correspondent, and then McKay Daniels always provides some great insight. He's a great wealth of knowledge for the industry, and I've gotten to know him over the years and man, he's a super guy and he's all in it for the industry. So they'll be speaking on Sunday.

And on Monday, keeping with the theme on the annual luncheon sponsored by Malarkey, we've got Dan Aderman, who's a standup comedian. We've done the inspirational speakers and we may go back to that at some point, but something about just laughing your butt off at the annual luncheon and then head into the trade show floor. We've had some speakers the last few years, literally my face hurts because I've been laughing and smiling for the last hour. So that's basically the speakers that we'll be showcasing for the annual luncheon, the legislative luncheon, and like I said, some of our own people from in-house that are going to be doing sessions as far as education goes, but we've got a great list of seminars. If you go to western roofingexpo.com, you can take a look at our events and schedule and take a look at... We really have a powerhouse schedule that we're we're really proud of.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, it's going to be great. I love it. And yeah, McKay's a great speaker. Just got to echo that. So good. Okay, so Alec, how do they register? How do they get involved? When should they do it? How about a little bit of hotel information?

Alec Ward: So all you got to do is go to western roofing expo.com, and if you're an attendee, you'll see little attendee in the menu there. Click on that, scroll down, you'll know what to do at that point. It'll say, register here. It's pretty simple stuff.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: They should be doing it now right. I mean, don't procrastinate.

Alec Ward: Yeah, if you wait until the last day on site, you're going to be waiting in line for a while. It's so much easier to either use the... Go online and do it and can probably do it through your app. But download the app, you can probably register there as well.

Joel Viera: Will call is much more friendly than the line of having to actually register onsite.

Alec Ward: You'll show up, get your name, and they'll print out your badge for you.

Joel Viera: And we have rooms at the Paris, which is our headquarters hotel and Planet Hollywood, which is right next door. And then the newly rebranded Horseshoe, which was formerly The Bailey's, which is connected to the Paris. So we have rooms at all three hotels, depending on your price range and just taste. And yeah, all three are really easy to get from your room to the actual convention center at the Paris. So we really hope you could join us this year.

We really take a lot of pride in what we're putting out there. And like I said, we're a great team of staff and volunteers, roofing contractors and manufacturers and suppliers and media. We all really work together. Every board meeting we get together and talk about how do we make the show better? Even after a successful show, how do we make the show better? And we always tinker and tweak to try to fulfill that goal. So please know, our end user, our contractor are always at the forefront of our mind and we're always trying to make things just better for you. So please come out and enjoy the show and give us your feedback. Good or bad. We really appreciate that.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And we really recommend to get the whole package, do all the classes, education, when we talked about that experience, that's so important. But if you can only do the trade show, that is free. So RoofersCoffeeShop, we have information all over the Western States directory. With that information. We actually just did a contest for some full packages, and so that's going to be announced soon. So it's well worth your time. It is such a great experience. Definitely if you do business within the Western states, but no matter where you're listening to this, if you want a great trade show, Las Vegas. And the dates are again, gentlemen.

Joel Viera: September 23rd through the 25th at the Paris, Las Vegas.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Okay. That's great. Thank you so much for joining us today.

Joel Viera: Thank you everyone.

Alec Ward: You're welcome.

Joel Viera: Have a great day.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Thank you. And thank you all for listening. I hope to see you at Western Roofing Expo. It is great. I have to tell you, I think I've gone to probably over closing in on 30 years worth of shows. It is spectacular, and we hope you all can make it. As I said, you can find all this information on the Western States directory, on RoofersCoffeeShop, MetalCoffeeShop, and CoatingsCoffeeShop. Thank you for listening to these great podcasts. You can find all of our podcasts under the Read, Watch, Listen under podcast, or on your favorite podcast channel. Be sure to subscribe and set those notifications. So we'll be seeing you next time, or at the Western Roofing Expo, catch us with Roofing Road Trips. See you next time.

Joel Viera: See you there.

Intro/Outro: Make sure to subscribe to our channel and leave a review. Thanks for listening. This has been Roofing Road trips with Heidi from the rooferscoffeeshop.com.