NC Technology Company Recognized for Pioneering Spirit by New Orleans Convention & Visitors Center, Q-MATIC Corporation First to Offer Mardi Gras Giveaway at Tradeshow
Q-MATIC Corporation, a technology company based just outside of Asheville, NC, is the first company to offer a trip to Mardi Gras in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina.
Asheville, NC (PRWEB) January 26, 2006
It was somewhat of a surprise when Q-MATIC Corporation, a technology company based just outside of Asheville, NC, found out they were the first company to offer a trip to Mardi Gras in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina.
The company settled on a Mardi Gras theme for their booth at a Food Marketing Institute (FMI) tradeshow they are attending at the end of January in San Diego and decided to give away a trip to Mardi Gras in New Orleans as a grand prize.
“We saw this as an opportunity to support the economic comeback of New Orleans. We have several customers in South Louisiana and we understand how important it is for the area to revive its tourism trade. We just never expected to learn we were the first company to offer such a promotion,” said President and CEO Hans Söderberg.
“We are delighted to have Q-MATIC Corporation as the first company of its kind sending tourists to New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina. We applaud the pioneer spirit of Q-MATIC Corporation for this decision and hope it serves as an example to other organizations that may be considering possible avenues in helping New Orleans make an economic comeback,” said Jeffrey Anding, Director of Convention Marketing, New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Q-MATIC Corporation is a privately held Swedish company that specializes in queuing and Customer Flow ManagementTM solutions with about 30,000 installations world wide in retail establishments, financial institutions, health care facilities and the public sector. North American headquarters are in Fletcher, NC. The company is attending FMI’s MARKETECHNICS Show, Jan. 30-Feb. 1, where they will display their “active waiting” retail supermarket queuing solutions to grocery industry executives.
Sarah Lupfer, Q-MATIC’s Retail Market Manager, explained that the idea for a Mardi Gras trip just seemed to be a natural grand prize.
“Once we had ordered all of our beads and put together the whole theme, it just made sense to send two people to New Orleans for Mardi Gras,” Lupfer said. “You can imagine our shock when Anding told us we were the first company to offer such a trip.
“The business in New Orleans that helped Q-MATIC put the package together (Bonnie Boyd and Company) normally only deals with organizations sending larger groups of people to New Orleans for conventions. However, they were delighted with our idea and went out of their way to put together a grand prize trip that, I think, is the ultimate Mardi Gras experience,” Lupfer said.
The lucky winners will receive round-trip airfare to New Orleans, flying in on Sunday, Feb. 26, just in time for the popular Bacchus parade and will leave Wednesday, Mar. 1. The giveaway includes a three-night stay at the historic St. James Hotel in the downtown area, close to the French Quarters, a party and Cajun dance and exclusive stand viewing at Michaul’s Cajun Restaurant on St. Charles Avenue for Monday night’s Orpheus parade. On Fat Tuesday, the winners will spend the day watching parades on St. Charles Avenue at the Intercontinental Hotel and will cap the night with dinner at the world famous Court of Two Sisters Restaurant in the French Quarters.
“It is an honor and exciting to be recognized as a pioneering spirit,” Söderberg said, “and now we put out the challenge to other companies to help jumpstart New Orleans’ tourist trade. Together, we can all play an important part in bringing that great city and its people back to prosperity.”
About Q-MATIC:
Q-MATIC is the global leader in queuing and Customer Flow ManagementTM solutions. Its innovative technologies to eliminate wait lines and provide important customer statistics have helped to change the way in which a variety of organizations deliver customer service by creating a more relaxed atmosphere for both customers and staff, optimizing workforce costs and adding value through increased productivity. Q-MATIC has 25 years of experience with about 30,000 installations and in-depth process knowledge of customer flow optimization within retail establishments, financial institutions, health care facilities, and the public sector. For more information, contact Sarah Lupfer at (828) 209-1000.
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