Author: Andrew

ScaleBREAKER, a leading manufacturer of compact water conditioner units for reducing limescale problems, was one of the first companies to make use of 200m2’s free five day exhibition stand hire promotion.

The ‘Exhibition Stand Hire London’ promotion which was launched on the 1^st of November 2012was based on 200m2 Exhibition Stands’ introductory 4m x 4m modular exhibition stand concept.

Commenting on the promotion, the Managing Director of ScaleBREAKER, Ian Gray said “Like all small businesses, I need to keep an eye on costs, especially when attending exhibitions.  When I read about 200m2’s promotion in my local paper, I was very skeptical but called anyway.  I was amazed to find out that I was entitled to this offer, with no hidden costs or tricks.  I just had to pay for the floor space at the show and the graphic panels which simply clipped into place between the stand trussing. 200m2 exhibitions even assisted me with the stand design and layout.”

“I had the best show ever.  All the other stands were boring shell schemes with random pop ups dotted around. I had something very different with lots of height, colour and flare.  Set up and tear down was all done within 20 minutes and I didn’t even need any tools.  The modular stand concept is very clever.  You can start with a small stand and just add to it as and when required.  I will definitely be looking to purchase my own kit in the near future.”

Tim Cronin, Managing Director of 200m2 added “Our modular stand system is based on two award winning modular stand solutions called TRUSSwire and CROSSwire.  TRUSSwire and CROSSwire are the most portable exhibition system in the world and they can be reused time and time again in different configurations.”

“Modular stands are becoming increasingly popular because they provide total flexibility.  Exhibition stand rental further extends the flexibility of the modular stand concept – it gives organisations complete financial freedom.  Consequently, more and more companies are buying a core exhibition stand which they can add to by leasing in additional modules when required.”

“The rationale behind this promotion was very simple.  I was convinced people would invest TRUSSwire and CROSSwire if they had a chance to test it in a live setting.  I am talking to Ian about two more exhibition stand rentals later this year.  As Ian says, our exhibition stand hire service hire will allow him to scale his stand infrastructure without a long-term investment.”

For more information on 200m2 Exhibition Stand’s range of exhibition stands and exhibition services, contact us today!

 

Last week, I wrote about the World Travel Market (WTM).  Arguably the biggest travel trade conference in the world, WTM takes place every year at London’s ExCeL conference and exhibitions venue.

Quite a few of the exhibitors at WTM this year had invested in ‘cardboard exhibition stands’.  Some of these units looked quite impressive; large in scale with high quality graphics.  Others looked flimsy and featured poor quality graphics – the overall impression in this latter case being somewhat ‘cheap’.

It seems all cardboard stands are not equal!  Some of the sturdier units looked very impressive – but they were let down with the choice of background colour – white!  Within just two days of being on show they looked battered and marked.  Most of the exhibition stands made of cardboard at WTM would have to be thrown away as a result.  I think this is a great shame because the investment in print quality in some instances must have been very great indeed.

Take the Andalucia stand for example. The Andalucia stand was the first WTM exhibitor to produce its stand entirely out of cardboard.  That’s quite an achievement but what is the true environmental impact of taking such a move?

Antonio Martin-Machuca, Marketing Director of the Andalucia Tourism Board commented that Spanish firm Ecowall had made a pitch for the stand during the tendering process for WTM.  He said “We thought that this was the best one to show in London because we know that the UK is very conscious of sustainable and green tourism.”

Herein lies the problem – they did this because the UK market is conscious of sustainable and green tourism and not because it is at the root of their commercial outlook.  Having an environmentally friendly stand shouldn’t be for just for ‘show’.  The whole point of an environmentally friendly stand is that it should demonstrate a tangible reduction in environmental impact.

Having seen the stand for myself, I wonder how much of the stand can be re-used.  The knocks and dents won’t simply wash away with a damp sponge!  Furthermore, I doubt it will survive transportation around the world without significant investment in ‘packaging’ – this only adds to the transport costs because the stand just takes up more volume.

The Andalucia tourism board announced that the cardboard stand reduced its cost by around 60 per cent.  At 75,000 Euros though, this is still a significant investment.  If the stand can’t be used again though, these savings are irrelevant as any cost savings are negated.  Consequently, the inks and cardboard required to produce the stand will simply be thrown into a landfill site.

I would argue that high quality modular exibition stands, which can be re-used time and time again in different configurations, remain the most cost effective and environmentally friendly exhibition stand solution.  If you can find a foldable solution which is compact and lightweight, transportation costs and the associated environmental impact are kept to an absolute minimum – TRUSSwire and CROSSwire are two such systems.

If you would like to find out more about these two award winning modular solutions, please get in touch!  They are far more affordable than you might think…

I’ve just returned from the World Travel Market, the leading global event for the travel trade.  I’ve visited thousands of exhibition stands in my time but even I was impressed by the sheer scale of some of the stand concepts which I saw today.  The ‘Greece’ stand for example was the largest stand I have seen at ExCeL in many years – it spread across the entire width of one hall!

The budgets involved with some of these stands is mind boggling… believe me I know…  some of the people from the tourist boards (which shall remain nameless) told me!   Similarly, I was surprised at how little some major tourist destinations were spending on their exhibition space!  Lots of organisations are still relying on basic shell schemes.

Others had invested in huge recycled cardboard units with print on one side (more on this later).  A great environmental statement perhaps but after 3 days of use it looked battered and bruised.  The stand would literally have to be thrown in the bin after the show.  In a world where corporate social responsibility is so important, I wonder if the true environmental impact of using disposable stands is being underestimated, even if they are manufactured from recycled materials.

The interesting thing for me as the MD of an exhibition services business, was the fact that many of the tourist boards simply didn’t realise how much money they could be saving by switching to a modular exhibition stands system like TRUSSwire.  Made from a composite material with an aluminium core, TRUSSwire is extremely easy to transport around the world.  It weighs very little and as a foldable gantry system it takes up very little space.

What’s more, because the quality of our printing techniques at 200m2 is so good, organisations can use the same promotional message time and time again.  Show specific panels can also be produced using environmentally friendly inks to minimise the true impact on the environment.

As someone who is passionate about sustainability, the environmental impact of exhibition management is extremely important to me.  If you would like to discuss ways you can save costs and minimise the impact of your exhibitions programme on the environment, please get in touch.  I’d be delighted to share my experience with you in the hope that your programme can benefit in the longer term.