Binge Drinking In This Industry?

Yup, it's a real thing. It's now 9:06am and I just cracked open my first beer. :-)

From what I hear, the security industry isn’t as bad as others when it comes to drinking and partying. Quite often, I hear that pharmaceuticals is vastly worse.  If you ask some servers next time you’re in Vegas for their opinion on this, you’ll learn a lot more valuable feedback than what you’ll garner here.

What I HAVE heard from casino employees is that our industry seems to have “a lot of Asians”, and that among them, there are more high rollers than they see during other conventions.

This industry makes one so sad and burdened sometimes that it doesn't surprise me one bit if someone drowns their sorrow. Drinking in trade shows is perhaps a happier occasion, but it's also where you can vent to your peers. With free booze even.

Source: Used to drink every day because of depressing work conditions and severe chronic pain.

I’ve noticed this too.

I’ve walked and carried many back to their rooms with the advice they stay there.  

I've heard of "who can drink the most" awards from bigger companies during trade shows. I even heard one story of someone getting a promotion shortly after winning the award. 

I used to be a Drink until you drop , from HS and a family that drank all we had in the bars and nite clubs . 

As I got older I changed , decided I wanted more out of life. 

Now I have adult children of my own , grandchildren and purpose NOT to drink. 

I go to shows drink water, make my common bond the industry and not the nite life. 

I only socialize with people who have that common direction and view of life. 

Life is short , spend it well , You cannot get it back . 

what ever is past wont change or come back . 

The effects will haunt you , but all that is past is past.

You cannot change it.

But you can do better today and tomorrow  

I now concentrate on Education, disciplines of the trade, making other s life safer and others around me a better place to live. 

I quite going to trade show s as the level of education and awareness has decreased and the return for investment in time and money was not there.

We all have the same , it is what you , we decide to do with it. 

I now own the business, make positive decision s to what is best , support cause's which improve , not tear down , build not destroy, create not break 

Cause's which make a difference 

That is why I support IPVM , and the cause to keep Truth:

Transparency, Quality, Professionalism in the industry. 

After over 3 decades in this industry binge drinkers and industry alcoholics are more common than when I started.  What is even more disappointing is the majority of these binge drinkers are indeed CEO's, EVP's, Sales Directors that are trying to conduct business with being hung over from a binge the night before or actually drunk during the meeting.  I actually take advantage of this situation since I am on my game and they are not in the negotiations.  As much as it pains me to see these people that I have know for many years doing this, I don't believe there will be much change.   

i see it in all the industries and markets. IT - AV - Fire - education - healthcare - etc.

At ISC there are SO many people - if 15% to 25% are plowed - that is still a lot of people. There are a lot of very good parties with great entertainment. Think ISC parties somewhat encourage heavy drinking - there is free drinks and it is vegas..... (LOL).

John I can see where you want to stay away from places where people might be drunk.  Inhibitions are down and there are a number of people that like to dislike IPVM.  LOL

I personally don't drink alcohol and still have a good time at the parties with vendors, customers and coworkers.

I think the drinking, especially at trade shows, has always been heavy and noticeable.  Many stories, both funny and sad, have come out of drinking-related escapades while folks are away at trade shows.  I can't even count the number of times I've heard guys say "I love my wife and kids, but it's so awesome to be away from all the madness (at home) for a few days"!  Some can handle the few days of "freedom" and some can't! 

I've been involved in trade shows for the building automation/HVAC industry as well as  ones for convenience stores and quick serve restaurants, and the C-Store/QSR ones were far worse as far as the drinking is concerned.  I remember when Red Bull first came out, they were pouring Kettle One vodka & Red Bull cocktails in the booth itself!  

Some companies still see the drinking escapades as bonding times and rites of passage, but it's getting a bit old to show up to a trade show booth just as it opens and half the reps in the booths are puffy, red-faced, and cranky from the night before. They're usually not worth much for the first hour or so!

The binge drinking is pretty much the same across the security, HVAC, Facility Management industries, and I am referring mostly to trade shows and industry events.

In Vegas, you can tell what kind of trade show someone is attending .. if they are walking around the streets giggling with one of those tall bright plastic daiquiri drinks, they're probably not at the ISC West show ... lol

I've never seen anyone s**t faced at any of the shows I've been to over the past 6 years or more. But maybe I just didn't stick around that long. I've been to a few after parties and while there were some heavy drinkers, I didn't see anyone being any crazier than other events I've seen. But then I don't stick around all night, either. Honestly the worst I've ever seen was back in the day when I worked at a newspaper company out with the sales & marketing and newspeople. Those were some of the most cringe worthy moments I remember.

Lot of people seen doing shots...

I've been going to security trade shows for years and attended many after show parties & events where the alcohol is free.  Remember the Pelco (pre-Schneider) ISC parties?  Wow!  Those were the tickets to get back in the day!  A-List entertainment, free food and 'all you care to drink' booze. 

Simply put - anytime you put on free alcohol, you're going to have people that over indulge.  

In my experience, the polluted drunk falls into one of two categories; the Amateur and the Pro.  The Amateur being the 'young gun' who hasn't ever been at an event where alcohol is free and goes nuts because it IS free and end up totally wasted as a result.  These are the folks that show up late the next day with booze on their breath and spend all of their time apologizing to everyone for what they can't remember doing the night before.

The Pro being the 'veteran' that takes advantage of the free booze to kill the pain of the 'lost mega-deal', being passed over for promotion, or to avoid having to expense the copious amounts of alcohol that they typically consume at these shows.  The Pro's are better at hiding it.

I don't think it's accurate to call it binge drinking.  It's more about human nature and the decisions people make when they have access to free booze.  

I will admit to imbibing at trade shows.  At nearly every company I have been at it is not only tolerated but almost encouraged.  I don't drink to the point where I am passing out in the middle of the casino and am rarely hung over.  Most of our group is the same.  However, some of my peers aren't even minimally disciplined.  I am used to having to track down one particular individual/trainwreck in the morning to make sure this person is not in a hospital somewhere and to make certain they make it to the plane.

At the the end of the second day at ISC West and morning of the third day we always get attendees stumbling by our booth still smelling of alcohol.  Conversations usually start with "tell me about your product" and then a minute later end up on a tangent like "I'm not allowed in Belize anymore" or "that's why I only eat the red Skittles."

Years ago I was at a conference in Texas that offered a complimentary wine and cigar bar.  Hardly anyone there smoked but everyone wanted to partake because it was free.  There were a lot of pale conference attendees the next morning.

One factor that may encourage trade show excessive drinking may be the fact that you can drink without having to worry about driving.  When home, the strict enforcement of DWI laws tend to make people more cautious.  Out-of-town shows...all bets are off.

Shows have always had a lot of drinking.  I notice it more at ISC West then at ASIS.  Maybe because it's Vegas.  i personally don't drink but here all the stories from others about how hammered everyone was during the show.  I think it's also more prevalent on the tech side then services.   

I picked up 2 accts due to this kind of mentality 

The customer , great return , told me he would not do business with a drunk due to the lack of professionalism. 

and said the company looked like the were in a drunken stuper and could not trust they would take care of him. 

Even though you can , Should you Drink to a drunken stuper

and even if there is no one to look over your shoulders and keep you in check , should you let go to the pt of not being able to do your job.

as a family in law inforcement , I see the effects of drunken stuper as it leeds to more days of loss, kaos , and lack of good judgement . 

There has to be more self control, self awareness, leaders who lead by good example , not drunked stuper 

I worked for a short time for a very rich , self made man, invester, developer 

his response to me was ( he was a permanent Drunk ) all who went to his parties Drank a lot , then his employees , family , would pick up the pieces and keep the company working. 

the real reason he drank was ( he lost his Purpose, vision, reason, passion for work ) someone else always picked up the pieces for him 

This is why I am the owner, self employed and in charge 

So I can keep life in a truly proper perspective. 

I lost lots of clients due to my need to make my family 1st ,and not them and thier selfish endulgence. 

Great Post Wish you all the best !

This industry certainly does have a binge drinking culture, which I've used to my advantage on multiple occasions. Customers that seem hostile and impossible to please become much more open to compromise after a drink or three. And I've mastered the art of pretending to be drunker than I am, so that I'm the only one at the bar thinking clearly. 

But it's not all about being sneaky. People like doing business with their friends, and alcohol is like a cheat code to friendship. Take two people, add a beer or two, and boom, instant friends. It's faster than Facebook.

I went to a Hikvision party a few years ago. I was told the bar tab was 250K by my regional rep, there were a lot of drunk truck slammers there. This is no different than any other industry, I would almost argue it doesn't exist as much in our industry. I have friends who are in sales in the oil industry and the stories I hear from them are CRAZY. Lots of money, a lot more than our industry and they go all out. 

NOTICE: This comment has been moved to its own discussion: Hikvision $250,000 Bar Tab

After a while your value as a asset to that company and any other is dropping with the very last drunken stuper 

I perform extensive backgrounds as so do most of the large company's I do business with. 

I , they want competency, Professionalism, clear headed, clear minded, good thinkers who can Reason, Troubleshoot, test with a deductive reasoning 

early on I applied for some large companies and while in background , up to a year in wait , i learned a lot about backgrounding employees and how history follows you up to 30 years , from 18 on , and when in T.S. it goes even deeper . 

so Be careful who , what , where you Let YOURself Go and Do. 

Records can be opened up. 

I do not think binge drinking is a "thing" in the security industry any more than it is elsewhere where you have a bunch of people and free drinks (open bar partner event, corporate card, etc.).

There are certainly some people who will reliably over-indulge, but they seem to be the minority in my experience.

When you are at a tradeshow, which for many people is the only time of year they see some old friends and colleagues, it is easy to stay out late and have a few too many. In that case I consider it less "binge" drinking. If you are 4 guys at a Holiday Inn closing down the lobby bar and running up an $800 tab, THEN you may have a problem.

I also disagree with the comments from people who claim they use these scenarios as a way to get some kind of upper hand in a sale/negotiation. Rarely does business get closed at these kinds of events in the sense of a signed contract. You might get someone to drunkenly agree to something, but getting them to recall that agreement the next day, or later, to actually finalize the deal would be a bit of a feat. I do not doubt that something like this may have happened once or twice, but not frequently enough that you could consider it a "strategy" or even an expectation going into the evening. In many cases, the kind of place where you can get lose-your-senses drunk is also not an ideal environment for trying to iron out the last bits of a sale anyway (loud music, constant interruptions, etc.).

The security industry does not stand out in this regard relative to my experiences in consumer electronics, telecomm, or IT security, and in some cases is more tame overall.

Looking back over 40 years, I feel the drinking problem has lessened. Just as it is no longer fashionable to take customers out for extended drinking lunches, that same factor seems to have resulted in a reduction of extreme drinking at the shows.  For example, I recall being told of a law enforcement show many years ago where so much alcohol was consumed that two handguns were accidentally discharged. Since no one was hurt, there was a round of laughter and the offending, very over-served officers were gently disarmed.  Today, that would lead to an extensive investigation, suspensions, and extreme media exposure. The point here is that I believe excessive drinking is considered unacceptable by many, and liability issues have reduced the "unlimited free booze" venues. Perhaps binge drinking is still somewhat common at a bar, but the big parties appear to have cut back. 

I'm not opposed to binge drinking, but would never do so in a professional environment or around my professional colleagues and peers.

Yes, but the it is the same at all trade shows in almost every industry.

Wow, this thread has so many insights in so many directions. What power your site wields.

To answer your original question, I think that drinking and trade shows have gone hand in hand since the beginning. The question is, to me, if you regularly indulge in your private life like you drink at trade shows, maybe some self-evaluation is needed. The after-hours culture is alcohol and all that goes with it, and competitive people will compete in all aspects of their lives ("I am a better sales rep than you and I can hold my liquor better than you. Wanna' shoot hoops?).

Now, from a practical sales/marketing perspective: I worked for another manufacturer a few years ago. The owners balked at the cost of having a booth at CES and asked for ideas of other things that we could do during the show. My associate suggested a party at Tao. Even though we did the obligatory invitations, we let everyone in, and everyone was happy. Everyone was loose. Several of our sales guys collared my associate and told him, "I have talked to potential customers tonight who I could never talk to before. This was the best idea ever."

Finally, I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon). Ya'all shouldn't be drinking or smoking. And don't even think about drugs. But apparently, if you call on the security people at BYU, you can now get a Coke.   

I have done 20 ISC shows, and of course some folks drink way too much. But i think they are by far the minority. And also of course, its because “Vegas!” I’m not saying they don't partake at home, but come on...the attendance would drop tremendously if it was held amywhere else. The location is a major part of the attraction!

Yes...

I think its just trade shows in general. I have been to security industry tradeshows and other industry (software in other industry shows and events) and the same thing happens. I think generally, socializing is the big aspect of getting to go to a tradeshow or event and drinking always happens...and there are always one or more that get knee deep in the hoopla. I don't think its a security thing. Happens everywhere.

Many of moons have gone by when i deliberated this topic, thought about this intently and decided to choose a different path. 

Everything has a price , even friendship, associations, relationships

There is always maintenance required (Time)

I changed after I got the business and success , so I sold off , decided to manage the accounts at a better level and have the time with out the changes in ME. did not like who i had become in the process

So the real question is : Do You want to be that person or really have those things . 

Many times I wanted to Dump Accounts after acquiring them , due to maintenance and relationship issues required to keep them Happy 

Social drinking is for sure a big part of our industry and is great for networking opportunities. After my 20 years in the industry, I’ve noticed most drink responsibility. Seems like some of the more youthful professionals tend to overindulge. However when drinking becomes something that is noticed by peers and management repeatedly, it can be very bad for future opportunities.

Probably still true. i am not taking part in these parties for years now.

I think it's same every industry for everyone in terms of binge drinking. Personally I've had some pretty epic nights at ASIS and ISC West but always knew when to stop.  There's always someone who over does it but for the most part people are talking about business or just dancing away to a mediocre cover band playing some 80's song with a conversation about Lenel or Genetec happening in a back corner somewhere.....

Anyway what did I miss this year at ISC West?

Maybe the some or our industry suffers from distress and despair and the use of alcohol as a coping mechanism? I mean watch the Dahua video with the Turing Robot hung up on a stand why show this?

To be fair, its not an official Dahua video, its from one of their OEM Partners.

Secondly, they are saying it will help you compete with the big boys, and it isnt driving into any bodies of water/crushing humans, so it could be worse.

Thanks #27 !

The video tells only little of the story due to editing.