Exhibitor registration begins in June.

Retailer registration and housing opens on Monday, April 4, for the NACS Show, a comprehensive event for convenience and fuels retailing professionals. This year’s NACS Show takes place Oct. 1-4 in Chicago at McCormick Place.

NACS Show retailer attendees, as well as wholesalers and distributors, can register for the event and secure housing at www.nacsshow.com.

Full registration, which includes admission to the general sessions, workshops, expo and the Welcome Reception, is $295 for NACS retailer members and $495 for other retailer attendees. One-day registration also is available ($195 for NACS retailer members and $295 for other retailers). These super-saver rates are available through July 22. Other rates apply for non-exhibiting manufacturers, service providers, brokers and consultants. Exhibitor registration will be available in June.

Attendees also can request hotel preferences online beginning April 4. NACS has negotiated room rates for more than 20 hotels in proximity to McCormick Place. Early submission of housing requests will increase the likelihood that attendees will be able to stay at the hotel of their choice within the NACS Show housing block. Equally important, these hotels have access to the shuttles for transport to and from McCormick Place.

Overall, 21,983 attendees were at the NACS Show in 2010, including 1,328 international attendees. The NACS Show featured a 370,000-plus net-square-foot exposition floor with 1,300 exhibiting companies — including 330 companies new to the NACS Show.

Earlier this year, the NACS Show was again named the top trade show in the U.S. for “buying power” and second overall for buying plans according to the annual report on U.S. trade shows developed by Exhibit Surveys Inc. The report found that 97% of NACS Show retailer attendees have the power to recommend or make final purchasing decisions — outpacing the overall retail show average of 85%. In addition, 75% of NACS Show retailer attendees intend to buy within 12 months, which is significantly higher than the retail show average of 50%.

This year’s NACS Show will be the association’s 50th annual meeting. NACS has held an annual meeting every year since its founding in 1961, but it wasn’t until 1976 that the meeting included an expo, which was held every two or three years. From 1986 on, the annual meeting included an expo, although those early years featured a greatly scaled-down expo every other year until the early 1990s.

The Petroleum Marketers Association of America (PMAA) has held its Fall Meeting as part of the NACS Show since in 1995 and this year’s NACS Show will again feature PMAA-branded workshops. The Petroleum Equipment Institute (PEI) and NACS will also continue their strategic alliance for a combined Show, which was introduced in 2002.

In addition to online registration, the NACS Show Website (www.nacsshow.com) features the latest information about exhibitors, speakers, workshops and networking events.