1# Green stands – we don’t mean the colour!
“In the exhibition industry, significant types and volumes of waste (packaging waste, wood, booth waste, food, paper etc.) are generated during events and exhibitions due to the nature of the business – multiple events in venues, fast turnaround between events, international nature of exhibitors etc” – Waste Management in the Exhibitions Industry – UFI | Greenview report, September 2020
This is something your target audience is conscious of and interested in. Moving towards a ‘greener’ stand booth is a non-negotiable for the industry, with the increasing use of energy-efficient lighting, recycled materials and eco-friendly construction techniques, there is no longer an excuse to have a ‘one-use’ wasteful display.
There are display systems that can be re-used and reconfigured over and over, such as modular systems and these will be key in reducing industry waste as they offer a smart investment if you wish to align your brand with the environmentally conscious values of your customers.
Alongside this, an emerging trend for the design of stands is a more ‘organic theme.
More brands are choosing to dress their stands with natural recycled or ‘natural looking’ materials. We predict a rise in wood effects and ‘living walls’ plus curved designs replacing the sharp industrial lines of traditional stands.
2# Overhead features
Traditionally, a stand booth can usually make use of two – three walls and sometimes the floor to display graphics/imagery and branding. It’s always been a very ‘ground based’ approach to design and build.
However, in 2024, you’ll see a rise in the use of hanging elements to make full use of the space provided.
These can include branded hanging gantry’s, led screens, enclosed floating roofs or integrated archways.
Visually, within an exhibition hall, this is enormously striking and allows visitors to find you very easily. It also provides opportunities for hanging elements, adding visual interest and dimension to enhance the stands design.
Integrated archways are particularly great for creating more private ‘zones’ within a stand and don’t come with the price tag or structural challenges of a gantry, so we predict these growing in popularity too.
3# LED Lighting
These make sense from an environmental and cost perspective but are starting to become an integral part of an exhibition display!
Integrated as channel lighting to highlight logos and shelving, used in standalone lightboxes to bring illumination all over the stand and now, they even come in a curved form which can be integrated into the organic forms we are seeing in stand architecture.
Lighting can change the mood and feel of the space, bring focus to products, help segregate ‘zones’ and get you seen. We don’t see the use of them dimming anytime soon.
