The World Cup is consuming, well, the world, as it does every four years. With the current World Cup being hosted in many cities across the United States, and the home team having a formidable squad, this one seems even more consuming for Americans. It is nice to see many countries and cultures descend upon these cities. People from overseas are experiencing US cities in a unique format, many for the first time. It was a reminder to me that trade shows offer a sliver of that as well, with many foreign companies exhibiting or sending representatives to US cities for these shows, and also US companies sending their reps to different international cities for shows as well. Of course, every country does things a little differently.
As many of our US clients have found out, our foreign friends similarly get to learn the ways of showing in the States. Now, not to get too into the weeds, but even within the US, the cities operate differently. In general, though, the biggest difference is the division of nearly every arm of the show. Someone for the booth build, someone for labor, someone for freight, someone for food, etc. And they tend to find things much more expensive. Oftentimes, we find the international shows tend to be more bundled. We offer ourselves as a single point of contact to help international exhibitors navigate the ins and outs of their particular show(s).
International shows can vary widely from place to place as well. Europe is different than Asia is different than South America. And that is to be expected. We find that typically, unless someone has a very custom booth with special, tough-to-replicate attributes, it is more cost-effective to have a booth built locally. The show itself tends to offer US exhibitors support in finding the right people to help them organize their booth. We are also continually making contacts in different countries to help support our clients in their international endeavors. If you have an upcoming show outside of the US and need some help, feel free to contact us!
I love the World Cup for being a spotlight on international events. And while an international machine show may not carry the same gravitas, it is still a great way for attendees and exhibitors to broaden horizons and experience different cultures. It can be challenging to navigate something and somewhere brand new, but we have found our global counterparts to be accommodating, and we likewise try to treat our international clients the same. If your organization is exhibiting in the US for the first time, or outside of the US somewhere for the first time, we are here to help!