Ep 154 What's Next for Luxury Outdoor Living? Insights from the Pool, Spa & Patio

The Luxury Outdoor Living podcast welcomes Megan Magana, show manager for the annual Pool Spa Patio Expo, a yearly show for pool, spa and deck professionals. It's being held in New Orleans, this year 2026, on November (Nov. 17–19) and returning to Las Vegas next year. Megan shares her career path into trade shows and explains the expo’s three pillars—education, networking, and products—offering certification courses, classroom sessions, and hands-on show-floor demos, plus 350+ exhibitors across pools, spas, patios, outdoor kitchens, and the co-located Deck Expo. The conversation emphasizes why homeowners should value builders who attend shows for updated product, code, and design knowledge, and how in-person connections and demos can’t be replicated online. They discuss awards, the new First Look Pavilion, Pool Nation hands-on training, and the Million Dollar Pool Design Challenge with live voting and a $10,000 prize.   Connect with us and discover more: https://www.farleypooldesigns.com/ https://www.youtube.com/@MikeFarleyDesigns https://www.instagram.com/farleydesigns/ https://www.instagram.com/luxuryoutdoorlivingpodcast/ Watch episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MikeFarleyDesigns/podcasts   Our Guest: https://www.poolspapatio.com/ https://www.youtube.com/@PoolSpaPatioExpo   00:00 Podcast Welcome 01:17 Meet Megan Magana 01:49 How Trade Shows Work 02:20 Megan Career Path 04:33 Trade Show War Stories 05:38 Joining Informa 07:51 Why Homeowners Care 09:34 Awards And First Show 11:16 Three Pillars Of Expo 13:25 Lazy River Lesson 18:00 In Person Beats Online 22:38 Classes And Speakers 25:32 Million Dollar Challenge 26:35 Design Challenge Format 27:23 Finalists Live Judging 30:35 Tools Not Renderings 32:06 Who Should Attend 36:58 Why Classes Aren't Recorded 38:33 Hands On Show Floor 40:46 Career Growth Stories 42:13 Beyond Pools Outdoors 44:50 Show Schedule Grind 46:02 Keep Learning Mindset 49:07 Rapid Fire Questions 51:03 Podcast Wrap Up