Welcome to the December edition of Northeast/Midwest Dive News. At the time of this writing, we just returned from the annual DEMA show in Orlando, Florida. This year’s DEMA show was a mixed bag. On one hand, show attendance was at an all-time low, only 5% of the dive retailers made the annual pilgrimage; however, amazingly nearly every booth reported strong results.
For us, the show was fantastic. We had a fantastic opportunity to interact with the divers and dealers. It was great to get feedback about our magazine and regional approach. For the most part, the feedback was great. The readers we spoke with love our local approach, support for dive clubs, and focus on local diving.
Since we were in Florida anyway, we sent our Southeast Regional Sales Manager, Keath Allen, to check out the local hot spots, specifically cave country. Keath had a great time. Stay tuned for Keath’s article online soon! After Keath visited cave country he traveled up to Clearwater Springs for the DUI DOG Rally event. As you probably know, we co-sponsored the entire DUI DOG Rally tour. We were lucky enough to attend nearly every rally. We had a great time attending the events and meeting our readers across the country.
As the dive season winds down and the holiday season approaches, we are grateful for all our friends in the dive industry. We are now bonded with the folks at DUI, the great folks at DAN (Divers Alert Network) and the DOGs themselves, but we are especially grateful for the local dive retailer. We recognize the sacrifices in owning a small business, and we appreciate the time and effort you put forth to advocate for the local diver. And of course we are grateful for our local divers. Your commitment to the sport and your love of diving inspires us.
What an amazing year for all of us! This summer/fall season has reinforced the importance of relationships in life and business for me, and I’ve been reminded the most important things in life are the people (and businesses) who are there for you!
Happy diving.
Master diver Mike Hughes takes you on a whirl wind tour of the inner sanctum of Inner Puget Sound. 
Often called the “Sunrise Side” because it is located on the east shoreline of Michigan, Alpena calls to divers from out of the past.
When you think of diving for tropical fish, you probably don’t think of Rhode Island...especially in late September.
Come visit Isla de Guadalupe with writer Bruce Watkins and see the best place to observe and photograph these fascinating animals.
Meet the newest member of the Dive News Network, and no we aren't talking about a person!
For over 15 years Ernie Arellano has been in the forefront of dive industry innovations for other companies but now Arellano is striking out on his own. 
