COLUMN The International Man
What Lies Ahead?
I
n 1605 William The focus of exhibit Shakespeare was design companies in surrounded by the the ’70s was to sell explague. As a young hibits. Sawdust ruled. boy he had been If you were not buildBy Larry Kulchawik afflicted and became ing exhibits, you were immune. Years later the plague not making a profit. Selling exreturned and he, like everyone hibit services (I&D, site services else, took refuge in quarantine. and marketing services) were a During three months of hunsecondary source of revenue for kering down, in a spurt of litsuppliers. This changed when erary creativity, he wrote King exhibitors began to measure the Lear, Macbeth and Anthony results of their investments. & Cleopatra. Fortunately, the The exhibit companies of the world was ready for his new ’80s still believed in sawdust point of view. So, what changes but were beginning to believe will we make in the tradeshow in the value of tradeshows for industry when we return to the exhibitor. Budgets were face-to-face marketing after tight, so showing results from COVID-19? their exhibiting investment The tradeshow/event inwas now a major focus. Fred dustry in North America has Kitzing believed that the exhibit experienced several epiphwas not as important as the anies that have changed the attraction it created and started direction of our industry over a trend that the exhibit should the years. McCormick Place provide a brand look and create burned to the ground during an attraction. The major reason the 1967 Housewares show. It for exhibiting was to commuwas then rebuilt in 1971 and nicate a value-added feature went on to become the number over competitors and to create one convention facility in the leads. Tradeshow marketing U.S. Its popularity for tradewas proving to deliver the shows influenced other major strongest results to encourage U.S. cities to build convention an attendee’s decision to buy. In centers to do the same. the ’80s and ’90s the economy In the 1970s, the perception raised its ugly head several of a convention was a party. times. Marketing budgets for Networking with your peers exhibitors were now under and customers created a special strong scrutiny. Exhibitors still attraction and the exhibits were believed in the value of tradesecond to this attraction. This shows, but really hated the perception quickly changed cost of exhibiting. This pushed and encouraged a belief that exhibit industry suppliers again tradeshows were now big busito change. Three things were ness, not a party. now driving costs.
1. Material Handling (Drayage) - Increased drayage fees were a major cost driver for any exhibitor’s budget. Show contractors also made adjustments. Some larger shows offered exhibitors a package price to include carpet, cleaning and drayage. Other show organizers then followed this model for managing show services to reduce and anticipate site fees. 2. Smaller Hotel Events Organizers and associations began to promote smaller shows held in hotel ballrooms. Many of these smaller shows were not replacements for the larger events, but in addition to them. Heavy exhibits were not an economical solution here. These hotel shows created a new revenue source for hotels, show contractors and associations. These shows delivered a target audience that engaged more closely within a locked environment. 3. Exhibit Design & Fabrication - As a result of these exhibitor concerns to reduce costs, exhibit fabrication methods changed to reduce weight and ease of set up. New exhibit supplier types were created: * Portables * Fabric * Aluminum exhibit systems * Graphic production * Overhead fabric signage * Truss/ lighting and AV applications. These changes created a new normal for exhibit design.
With each economic crisis, exhibit suppliers have created new solutions, changing their traditional design methods to better serve exhibitor needs. Today, nearly all exhibit design companies sell both custom and portable exhibits and many offer exhibit rentals, international services and exhibit marketing services for their clients. There is little sawdust since they now subcontract building parts and materials and simply do assembly and fitting. Carpenter skills are not needed as much anymore so many union needs were reduced. Sawdust is no longer the golden goose for profitability. COVID-19 has become an international crisis and will require some creative solutions going forward. Events will be affected most by the way they are organized, and the way attendees will react. Exhibit suppliers will rise to the challenge again. The tradeshow industry coal mine is knee deep in canaries but will surely uncover new ways to support the human need for face-to-face communication. As Shakespeare aptly wrote, “To be or not to be, that is the question.” Stay tuned for all the new strategies soon to be explored! Larry Kulchawik is the head of Larry Kulchwawik Consulting and author of “Trade Shows from One Country to the Next.” For more info, visit www. larrykulchawik.com
Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste” - Winston Churchill 16 May/June 2020 Exhibit City News
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