It’s that time of year again. Trade show season is upon us, and we look forward to seeing you all next week at the American Rental Association Show in Orlando, Florida. Look for us at Booth #4659, and meet the equipment and the crew behind our proud brand.
Trade shows have been staple events since the inception of the rental industry. Barreto Manufacturing attended our first trade show in 1983 - that’s 40 years now of working with incredible, hardworking, and kind people - truly the best in the industry.
When couple Greg and Chris Barreto founded Barreto Manufacturing shortly after producing the industry’s first hydraulic tiller, they attended the California Rental Association Show. Chris remembers the story of their first trade show well, “We didn’t even take a sales order form with us, that’s how new we were to the industry,” she recalls.
“Here we had just Greg and I working a 10x10ft booth in the corner of the ground level of the show, with one tiller for display and a black and white printed brochure. We really experienced the generosity and helpful spirit of so many other manufacturers and customers in the industry at that show, and we feel very grateful to have been taken under their wing.”
At the time, other manufacturers with similar startup stories to Barreto were there to teach Greg and Chris the ropes, including standard trade show processes like how to set up a booth and polish the equipment. Trade shows were a brand-new experience on the sales side of the business compared to the garages Greg had been working out of to design and build the first tiller.
“It takes baby steps to start a business. People ask us today if we would have still started the company if we had known what it would take, and all we can say for sure is that we’ve taken it step by step, and we had great industry partners who showed us what it was all about,” Chris says.
It’s Greg’s thought that while Barreto has been successful in growing beyond its small beginnings, “Our desire is to keep our personal touch in the industry - knowing our customers and serving them to the best of our ability,” he says. The helpful and industrious spirit of the rental industry has greatly shaped the products we make and the way we do business.
Barreto Manufacturing will be at the ARA show for the 39th consecutive year, now offering 12 machines in our show-floor product lineup.
Come see us! February 13th-15th at the ARA Rental Show 2023, Booth #4659.
Orange County Convention Center, North/South Concourse
9899 International Dr.
Orlando, FL 32819