The QED Team descended on the Showman’s show this year to explore the possibilities and exciting new events products coming to market in 2016, from portable toilets to portable hotels weren’t disappointed!
There was so much to see and, being an events exhibition, we enjoyed the complimentary provisions of burgers, hot drinks and even slightly stronger ones available at many of the stands for those who weren’t driving or borderline alcoholics. At the Wernick Events stand, there was a competition to win a free surf lesson at the Snowdonia Surf Wavegarden man- made lagoon, which as you can imagine, we keenly entered and our fingers remain firmly crossed.
Of particular interest to us at the show were the hotel products that we found amongst the 298 exhibitors at the show. Interesting solutions to the temporary and semi-permanent accommodation market including the safe deposit style budget bunk room product from Ohana that is usually deployed across Europe for festivals and music events, offering a high density solution for those strapped for cash. Similarly Flexotel’s offering to the mix was an innovative solution in a flat pack hotel, collapsing down for ease of transportation, the interior of the room was basic and utilitarian which would be great for a short deployment and at an affordable price point.
The more rustic look was presented by SuiteHuts in the form of a log cabin/tent glamping product that collapses down making it fully transportable with the use of a forklift. The interior provided all the expected features but with a deployment time of 20 minutes per module. However by far the most sleek and luxurious product at the Showman’s show this year was undoubtedly the SnoozeBox (we admit a slight biased as they are our client!) stand or should we say event village, with their recently released expanding 6 en-suite room hotel all within the confines of a 14 metre articulated trailer, the ‘Snoozy’, or futuristic glamping pod to you and me, was also on show ranging in size from the basic 4 bunk offering to a luxurious fully fitted out en-suite family room within an inflatable AirClad shell. We all fell a little bit in love with their Escargoo inflated room, imagine a tent on steroids, and you wouldn’t be too far from the truth! It’s snug and soothing interior felt warm and welcoming and would be fantastic for festivals and camping.
Overall the Showman’s show was a great experience and we had a fantastic day, leaving with a lot of good contacts for the future and heads brimming with information for QED developments into the future.