I’ve been very lucky in my working life - I’ve spent a great deal of time travelling the world at the expense of my employers.  I’ve had some great experiences and really loved the diversity and challenge of working with different cultures.  Whenever I was recruiting I always looked for staff that had stepped out of the rat race and done something different, people who had the courage to travel abroad and really experience a new country.

Your experiences definitely colour your thoughts and I remember being really surprised at a temp Event Co-ordinator who didn’t know how to call The Netherlands and even when she learnt how to do it, she was scared of making a call to another country.  Maybe I’d just become to used to this extended world of events. It had become common place for me to just call someone up on the other side of the world and ask if they could provide services for us. It also has to be said that we’re very lucky in that English is nearly always understood.  The upside is we can work very easily across the world, the downside is our language skills can flounder as it’s just too easy to fall back on English. My French and German just don’t get the outings anymore and so they’re really, really rusty.

Mind you, English as a common language didn’t always mean that working onsite was easy - often the office account managers spoke fluent English but the teams they’d send onsite spoke a bare minimum.  We always made it work - venues, other suppliers and distributors are always a great help to get the job done.But it’s not just the language that’s an issue, it’s also the culture.  From my experience British events staff are used to long hours and getting their head down to get the job done.  We grab food whenever we can but basically keep on going until we’re all done or have reached a good point to stop.  It’s not the same for other cultures where they down tools at lunchtime and expect a full meal, even if it requires a 3 hour break from the work.  Now, I love food and realise that we English don’t always respect our food properly however, when a jobs got to be done, surely everyone can put aside our usual expectations and fit in?

It has to be said I love working across Europe - the events staff are generally so friendly, speak at least 2 languages and are organised and supportive.  It makes such a difference to an event - we all know that calm in the face of challenge is a great asset in events and throwing your toys out the pram just doesn’t help.  However, if that’s what you’re faced with, then it’s up to you to appreciate the differences in culture and find a solution. My experience has helped me manage this - as you work you can learn, amend and avoid situations that might have stopped you in your tracks earlier.

I recently worked at ISE 2011 in Amsterdam - how fantastic to be involved in a thriving show.  The official figures quote an increase in traffic of 22% which really is quite amazing and so refreshing.  It was great to see some bright innovative stands as well - this blog is my take on the stand designs around the show.

There is still a lot of white, angular walling but white as shown on it’s extensive use in websites is still one of the most versatile colours to go with.  Most brands work well against white and indeed brand guidelines always cover that combination.  However I do feel it is a bit of a safe colour, one that is not going to offend the board and split the red haters from the red lovers.

Most stands seemed to be relatively simple with little excessive catering - no bad thing, given the cost and mess that result!

Carpets seems to have given way to harder flooring.  I’m not sure if this is due to the outrageous wastage that comes from using carpet for 3 days and then throwing it out or if it’s just a fashion thing.  Hard flooring may be easier to re-install at another show but it ultimately depends on planning a series of exhibitions so you get the most use out of your stand components.

Our stand had considerable under-floor padding to make it easier on the feet and legs.  This is an American led item where most stands over there will not build a platform as they’re allowed to run flat power cables underneath a thick pad. Personally I’m not sure if it helped my feet but I know most people who walked on the stand cooed with pleasure at the soft flooring.

Lighting rigs are being used more and more to give a much more gentle light wash to a stand.  They’ve always worked really well to accent particular signs and products but maybe now the price is coming down so the smaller stands can consider using it.

The last thing I noticed was the large number of angles - this is a much more cost effective solution, enabling a stand to be used in different configurations at a variety of tradeshows. However, it did seem quite harsh so maybe a few strategic rounded elements or non 90º corners would help make you stand out.