The National Incentive Show 2005 was praised by visitors and exhibitors alike when the industry’s leading autumn event closed after three highly successful days at the NEC Birmingham.

The co-location with The National Direct Marketing Show and The National Venue Show proved yet again to be valuable and the busy aisles ‘buzzed’ with atmosphere as buyers sought incentive, direct marketing and venue solutions.

Floorspace and exhibitors were both up 10% at this year’s event and visitor numbers were again up 9%, a continuing year on year trend. This figure includes visitors crossing over from the co-located National Direct Marketing Show and National Venue Show.

The event, and many of the original new companies and products on show, made a tremendous impact. Exhibitors were delighted with the quality of visitors to the event, noting that many top end decision makers attended from leading companies across a variety of industry sectors.

Other notable events included a visit from MP John Greenway, the parliamentary representative for the sales promotion and incentive industry, while an informal drinks reception for all three shows including entertainment provided a perfect opportunity for exhibitors and visitors to network and celebrate the first day’s success.

‘The show is busier than for some years and visiting the stands I had a clear impression that good contacts were bring made and substantial business would be done. The new initiatives benefited exhibitors and visitors and showed great imagination from the organisers. The features gave tremendous opportunities for branded products - which I believe should be exploited further in future years. Overall the show was extremely upbeat,’ said John Greenway MP.

Exhibition Director Darren Whitehead said, ‘The National Incentive Show continues to go from strength to strength and we are delighted with this year’s event. Modern marketing exhibitions are not just about the volume of visitors but, more importantly, about the quality of people attending. The co-location of the three shows is both a time-saving exercise and a worthwhile day out of the office for marketers.

‘The new features this year were a huge success - the first ever seminar programme, The Office and the Christmas Grotto, and were received extremely well by visitors and exhibitors. There was a fantastic atmosphere on the show floor with vast business being done and visitors absorbing the great ideas, innovations and electric atmosphere, the exhibitors needless to say were delighted with the result.’

Feedback from exhibitors showed that they were delighted with the quality of the visitors that had attended the exhibition. John Mallows, Chairman of the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA) said, ‘We felt that the number of visitors was up on last year and the calibre was excellent for us as an Association. The feedback that we had from our members exhibiting has nearly all been very positive, with the majority reporting good numbers and good leads. We had over 420 sign ups for Promotions Buyer magazine and the joint promotion with Fotorama undoubtedly helped this as well as a very focused approach by BPMA staff to hit their targets. We had two member applications filled in on the stand with a further three already received in the office and then we had about 30 further enquiries regarding membership.

‘The hospitality area was again well received. My overall impression is that it was a well attended, busy and positive show, for an industry that is currently working hard to stay in front.’

Kyp Systems took the opportunity to launch at the show, Nicholas Miller, COO/Joint CEO, said ÔNIS was the perfect launch exhibition for Kyp Systems. The show generated approximately 400 sales leads for us, which exceeded our expectations. The quality of the visitors was a good mix, including managerial level blue chip clients. Overall we were very pleased with the show, it delivered the people and sales opportunities we were hoping for.’

Visitors were also impressed by the range of exhibitors and the variety of products, services, new ideas and solutions that were on offer. Phil Boulton, Managing Director of Qubic Print Direct said, ‘It’s worth having both shows on the same day. I have come to the show looking for one or two ideas. I want to put my company brand on the promotional marketing scene. I have found the event very useful and worthwhile.’

Among the highlights at this year’s National Incentive Show were the following companies and products, that particularly caught the eye.

Fetch innovation offered a development on the wrap around wrist band, with a an electronic LED embedded in the band. The band is simply wrapped around the wearer via an elasticated strap it on the required part of the limb, and then the LED is switched on via the switch. The Safety Band is lightweight, adjustable, water resistant and ideal for outdoor pursuits, or for children in darker months travelling to and from school or after hours clubs and activities. Visit the website at www.fetchinnovation.co.uk.

Magimark presented the effective, practical and useful Magimark clip, an economical way of clipping pages together, for use as a bookmark or with a magnetic version, securing paper clips or pins in a memorable place. The Magimark can be printed all over, ensuring complete brand awareness while providing a useful accessory. Visit the website at www.magi-mark.com.

Henbrandt Limited displayed its range of LED message lights, that can be decorated on to garments or promotional accessories. The wearer simply enters in whatever they want the LED panel to read, and then activates it and has a scrolling message on their T-shirt or cap, the panels are controlled by AAA batteries that have their own pouch and have around 20 hours. The company also offers light up panels for an extra decorative effect. Contact Henbrandt Ltd on 020 8503 6464.

For the ultimate handy desk item, Penife offer the 2 in 1 pen and knife combination Penife, that features a pen at one end and a retractable blade at the other. The blade is simple to replace and the pen can be decorated by print or engrave on the barrel. Visit the website at www.penife.com.

Suvic products demonstrated its range of promotional accessories, which proved to be the ultimate wet concept! Starting out as small, thin pieces of ‘cardboard’ effect material that can be decorated on, once placed in water the items grow into sponges as they absorb the water and grows up to 20 times its own size. The sponges can be cut into any shape or size and as well as being a fun incentive idea, they also make for a useful desk accessory in the event of a drink spillage. Visit the website at www.suvic.co.uk.

The National Incentive Show 2006

The National Incentive Show 2006 will be returning to the Birmingham NEC and will be held from 19Ð21 September 2006. Exhibition Director Darren Whitehead is optimistic about the future of the event, ‘With exhibitors reporting such a tremendous success at this year’s event, it is not surprising that bookings have already been taken for next year’s show.’

For further information on the National Incentive Show, visit the website at www.nationalincentiveshow.com.

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