What Happens at Tradeshows… Ends Up in This Blog

We’ve officially crossed the finish line of our tradeshow marathon, wrapping up Spring Fair, Shoppe Object, and finally, Ambiente. And wow, did Frankfurt give us a run for our money.

We had our team all over the globe, with Phillip and Angeline soaking up the big apple, and Mark, Edd and Harry jet-setting from Birmingham to Frankfurt, it's certainly been eventful

Here are some of the highlights (or lowlights, depending on how you look at it).

Spring Fair

From traffic chaos to questionable food choices, and a very expensive 20 minutes in the casino, it's safe to say Mark, Edd and Harry had an experience.

Getting to the NEC was a battle in itself. Multiple crashes on the M42 (as there always is) turned it into a car park. It really was an endurance test.

After finally getting there, they made the rookie mistake of thinking a Wetherspoons meal would sort them out. Turns out, everything tasted like cardboard, and it was airport prices. The dream was dead.

Further along at the show, in a moment of overconfidence (and possibly tradeshow delirium), Harry, Mark, Edd and some friends went to the Casino next to the NEC. Harry claims that as a group, they lost £250 in the first 20 minutes and then called it a night. Mark would like to correct that this was Harry and only Harry, and no one else from the company. It was a humbling experience, for sure.

Then, in what is now an unfortunate tradition, poor Jake (one of our agents) got sick again. He powered through like a champ, but we’re considering wrapping him in bubble wrap before the next event.

Despite everything, Spring Fair was a success, and it was great catching up with so many of you.

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Spring Fair Bestsellers

We know it's what you're really here for. Here's our Bestsellers from Spring Fair!


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Meanwhile, at Shoppe Object...

Phillip and Angeline's flight to New York was pretty smooth. Phillip was settling in with a can of wine and watching 'Escape to the Country' - not any of the new movie releases they had! When they finally arrived at the hotel after a long day of travelling, they were so excited to see the view from their rooms on the 32nd floor. It had finally sunk in that they were actually in New York City! 

The next day was all about building the stand. After 10 long hours, they finally finished around 8:30pm, though it wasn't without some stress. Although they were exhausted, the pair forced themselves out for the evening, not wanting to waste any time ticking off the list of things to do, recommended by Mark.

One of the many things on their to-do list was to visit a bar in Soho, namely 'Flaming Saddles'. It's a country and western-themed gay bar, with dancing barkeeps. Definitely an experience!

Luckily on Saturday, they had a free day, where Phillip really lived out his 'When Harry Met Sally' and 'Working Girl' fantasies. They visited Katz Deli, and rode the Staten Island Ferry, before visiting the 9/11 Museum in the afternoon - it was very poignant.

To end the evening, they ventured into Oscar Wilde bar - another suggestion on Mark's list, but they had no idea what to expect. Little did they know it would soon become their favourite bar! It was completely decked out for Chinese New Year. Apparently, they go all out when decorating place for seasonal holidays.

Fast forward to Sunday, it was then time to start the show! Phillip learnt a lot about American geography from all the people by asking them where they were all from. 

He was completely disillusioned though when he met some people from Salem...of course Phillip had to mention one of his favourite films, 'Hocus Pocus', but subsequently learnt that Sarah Jessica Parker, Bette Midler and Kathy Najimy never stepped foot in Salem! It's all smoke and mirrors...

When the show closed, they headed to a GCA drinks reception with their new buddies, Ellie and Hamish from East End Press. They met lots of lovely people from the industry, including Kate from Quick Brown Fox who highly recommended we go to a speakeasy called 'The Woo Woo', which is 80's themed and inspired by the sexy, seedy underbelly of Times Square. Despite their heavy legs and better judgement, they, of course, didn't want to miss the chance to have a drink in an old sex shop, but were dismayed to actually find it closed with a private party! I guess they'll just have to visit NYC again...
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On Monday evening, after a busy day of exhibiting, Angeline and Phillip headed to the exhibitor drinks, though it was not like anything they had experienced at other tradeshows. The setting was a club, called 'The Box'. It had a very inconspicuous façade, and when you entered it was a dimly lit cabaret bar, completed with burlesque performers! It was a free bar for the first hour and by no one's surprise it was all the Brits that were first in line for some drinks. The servers weren't stingy with the drinks either; Angeline asked for a tequila soda and was given three! Everyone else was also happily double parked. Everyone hit the dance floor where they had a DJ and drag queen performance. Leaving at 9:30 and feeling like they'd had a whole night out, Angeline and Phillip finished the night with some bomb Thai food from 'Thai Diner' round the corner - another one of Mark's recs. It was delicious!

After much fun exhibiting, Tuesday was the day to break down the stand. It only took them around 3 hours, though it wasn't without some expletives! 
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The final day was Wednesday, where the sun was shining over The Big Apple. Off Angeline and Phillip went to Upper East Side, to visit one of our lovely customers, Kim at E.A.T Gifts. After a look round her store, they headed to Central Park for a leisurely walk. I say leisurely, but they did end up doing over 20,000 steps that day, so were utterly exhausted when it came to waiting at the gate for the flight home. Phillip was so conked out when they finally boarded the plane, he missed the commotion of the lady in front of them vomiting all over the aisle. 

Fortunately, they did manage to get home all in one piece and in good time. 
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Shoppe Object Bestsellers


And finally, Ambiente

Wow, Frankurt really did give Mark, Edd and Harry a run for their money. Between battling overweight luggage, navigating locked exits, and some interesting stand choices, it was an eventful one.

The night before their 5am flight, they found themselves in Edd’s hotel room, desperately trying to get five bags under 23kg. Delirium had well and truly set in. There was repacking, reshuffling, and a growing sense of despair. In the end, they had to admit defeat and buy an extra suitcase at the airport.

After a solid three hours of sleep, they landed in Frankfurt at 9am and headed straight to the venue. The stand-building mission lasted all day, right through to 2am. At that point, they were the last ones in the building. Turns out, if you stay too late, they lock all the exits. It took them a full hour to figure out how to escape the venue. Harry's traumatised.

Fast forward to the actual show, where Edd spent the entire show being followed by a security guard. That is, until he suddenly turned around and in fluent English urgently asked, “Can I buy your 3D cards? I NEED THEM.” He's our new brand ambassador.

‎ Then, in a plot twist that could happen to anyone (but mostly Edd), he bought some hand cream, slathered it all over his hands, and then realised it was actually shampoo. A tough moment for him. A great moment for Harry and Mark.

We opted for some very intense blue stand lighting, which resulted in customers having to physically take products off the display just to see them properly. Mixed reviews. To keep the stand smelling fresh, we also strategically placed toilet air fresheners all over. This backfired when one leaked, making the whole team feel violently unwell. Mistakes were made.

On the way home, Mark was stopped at airport security and suddenly surrounded by three police officers who suspected him of smuggling explosives. You know, typical Mark behaviour.

Then, as if they hadn’t had enough drama, Edd’s bag got pulled aside next, for containing a box cutter. Not exactly the smoothest airport experience, but at this point, would we expect anything less?

To top it all off, Brexit actually worked in their favour for once. While the EU passport line stretched endlessly, they breezed through the Other Passports queue with no one else in sight. A small victory to end the trip.

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Ambiente Bestsellers

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Phew! It really has been a whirlwind.

From Birmingham, to New York, and then Frankfurt, we've had a whale of the time at all the different tradeshows over January and February.

But, we're sure that's not all you'll be seeing of us at tradeshows this year.

Stay tuned to find out where we'll be heading next!

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