James asked:

I'm establishing a company importing patio furniture to Canada. I am just wondering if you can help me find all the trade shows in Canada to market my products. Thank you for your consideration.

CanadaOne answered:

When searching for trade shows, you'll want to look for retail trade shows, home and garden shows and cottage shows in order to focus on the audience you're trying to sell to.

There's a Web site called Trade Show News Network (www.tsnn.com/) that can help you find just about any type of trade show information you want. Click on “Find Tradeshows,” then search the database under the categories “Landscape and Garden” and “Home Furnishings and Interior Design.” You'll get a long list of upcoming events for Canada and the United States.

Another good site is Expo Guide (www.expoguide.com/home.html). This site lets you search alphabetically, by date or by place for trade shows in Canada and the United States.

For Canada-specific shows, try What's Showing (www.whatsshowing.on.ca/). Click on “Home & Garden” for a listing of trade shows in Ontario and Alberta.

You may also want to see if there are any associations or publications that cover your specific industry. If there are, they may have information on trade shows as well.

Once you've found some trade shows to attend, you may want to look at the Canada Business Service Centre Web site (www.cbsc.org). There's an article called “Trade Shows” (www.cbsc.org/fedbis/) that has tips on exhibiting and buying.

Good luck with your company!

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