Fair application and space contract

8 stand types

contract restrictions narrow the choice of type

Stand types

Application order and position

At most fairs, space is allocated by application order and by previous participation. Applying early means seeing a wider set of options on the hall plan. Applying late means choosing from what is left, which usually costs you open sides.

What you declare on the form becomes binding: the product group to be exhibited, the area requested, the preferred position and the stand type. The product group matters most, because organisers divide halls by product group.

A confirmed position is the precondition for design. No floor plan can be drawn before the number of open sides is known, and that is exactly where the differences between stand types come from. The area requested on the form is not a binding commitment, but the organiser draws the plan around it. Asking for more than you need makes reducing it later difficult; asking for less means the neighbouring plot goes to somebody else. A realistic number eases the whole of the next six months.

Five clauses to read

1. Payment schedule. Instalment dates and the point after which the fee becomes non-negotiable are stated. Your budget approval has to land before that date.
2. Cancellation. The refund falls as the date approaches, and after a stated point some contracts refund nothing.
3. Right to relocate. The organiser may reserve the right to redraw the hall plan. It binds the design, so it should be known early.
4. Height and surface limits. The height and finish of surfaces facing a neighbour are regulated at most venues.
5. Contractor approval. The company building the stand is declared to the organiser; some venues also require a deposit and insurance certificate.

These five make up the part of the contract that is not about price, and they are usually signed unread. Yet cancellation sets the budget risk, the height limit sets the design, and contractor approval sets who you may work with. Reducing them to a single page before signing is faster than any correspondence afterwards. That page is also the agenda for your first meeting with the stand contractor.

Reading the manual alongside the contract

The space contract does not stand alone; the technical manual that comes with it works as an annex. The manual carries the deadline for stand approval drawings, the cut-off for power and water orders, material and fire class requirements, and build-up and tear-down hours. These vary by venue and are reissued each edition.

Reading the manual before design starts is the cheapest investment of time available. Opening the same document after production has begun means revisions.

For fairs abroad, the rules of any participation support scheme belong in the same file, and their timing often depends on the signed space contract. The steps on our side of the process are set out on our services page. Send a copy of the manual to the stand contractor as well. When exhibitor and contractor work from different versions, that is usually where an on-site disagreement began. Note the date you downloaded it, too; when an update appears, comparing the two is straightforward, and that small discipline saves more time in approvals than anything else.

Can we choose our own stand contractor?

Usually yes, but the company is declared to the organiser and approved. Some work, such as power and rigging, may have to go through the venue’s approved supplier.

Can the space be enlarged later?

Possible if the neighbouring plot is free and the hall plan allows it. After the design freezes, though, enlarging means redrawing the floor plan.