Ever since I have been writing for Independent Processor magazine, I’ve been attending the AAMP Annual Convention. It’s just one of multiple trade shows and conventions that I attend each year, but it’s much different from the massive expos that take up multiple halls in Chicago, Atlanta or Las Vegas. The sight of hordes of children going from booth to booth looking for freebies and candy like it’s Halloween is pretty much exclusive to the AAMP show.
This year’s convention was especially welcome because it was the first such event in two years. Last year’s show in Iowa was a COVID casualty, and the return of a face-to-face show in Oklahoma City provided a welcome dose of normalcy. Admittedly, many of the conversations touched on last year’s pandemic and how their companies were affected. But as the processor community navigated through the most trying times in recent memory, this show almost felt like a reward. Congratulations, you survived 2020, your business is growing, you got your vaccine, and now you get to go to Oklahoma City and drink a beer at the Cowboy Museum while talking with friends you haven’t seen in a couple of years.