Refining our role as the propane industry’s information source

Senior Editor Kevin Yanik, far right, visits with Kent Smith of Tri-Gas & Oil at the 2016 LP Gas Growth Summit.

We at LP Gas magazine celebrated 75 years in the publishing business in 2016. Throughout three-quarters of a century, we’ve served the propane industry as its premier information source.

Today, we still hold that designation, which we take quite seriously. Our team of editors, writers, content producers and designers work every day to provide the most updated information impacting both the propane industry and the decisions you make at your businesses. And we do this through a variety of media platforms.

But just as the energy environment and propane industry have changed over the years, so has the publishing industry. Through smart business models, talented employees and technology, LP Gas aims to provide benefits to propane industry companies.

In addition to our monthly print publication, we can reach our readers digitally – whether at lpgasmagazine.com, through our e-newsletters or on social media. But there’s also another key platform that’s growing in popularity and providing value for our readers and media partners: events.

In November, we held the second annual LP Gas Growth Summit at Reunion Resort in Orlando, Florida. We hosted 16 retail propane companies and six equipment vendors in an intimate setting perfect for networking and learning about new ways to grow gallons.

The event is based on a unique model of prescheduled 20-minute meetings between retailers and vendor companies.

The LP Gas Growth Summit isn’t designed to replace trade shows, of course, but it addresses an issue we hear quite often from our attendees and vendors: It’s difficult to hold quality meetings and conversations with the right people on a trade show floor amid the many distractions.

Our goal with the LP Gas Growth Summit then is to connect forward-thinking retailers with companies that can help them grow year-round gallons in newer markets of the industry while also adding efficiencies to their operations. This year, vendor companies working in autogas, irrigation, power generation, tank monitoring and composite cylinders attended the event.

“I came here to wrap my head around exactly how to market autogas, to better our company and to increase our gallon sales,” says Gordon Cunningham of Georgia Gas Distributors in Sandy Springs, Georgia.

Tarun Kundhi of Viking Cylinders says the greatest takeaway from the LP Gas Growth Summit is “the interest from marketers to be open-minded and looking for different ways to grow their businesses, whether that’s autogas, lawnmower applications or looking at cylinder exchange in a new way.”

“Just this morning, I probably have had two or three new ideas presented to me that I never would have thought of,” says Todd Miller of White Mountain Oil & Propane in North Conway, New Hampshire. “It was worth the trip just for that.”

We combine two days of one-on-one meetings with educational events (a featured speaker and panel discussion, for example) and networking opportunities (a cocktail reception, barbecue and golf) to give attendees a variety of opportunities to connect with one another.

The LP Gas Growth Summit is just another way we can play our part in bringing the propane industry together. We do that through the printed magazine, in the digital space and now face to face. That’s a rewarding experience for us on all fronts.