Organisers have reported an uplift in exhibitors with more space sold than the entire 2017 event already. The lineup includes over 70 companies that are set to make their FIT Show debuts from countries including the UK, USA, Turkey, China, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, Norway and Serbia.
Alongside an uplift in exhibitors, pre-registration for the FIT Show 2019 is up by over 100% with visitors becoming wise to the benefits of early registration, planning their trip early and making steps to prepare for their biggest business days of the year.
Organisers have also announced a number of updates to its 2019 format, broadening the proposition to include a bigger focus on materials such as aluminium, timber and flat glass. This includes the launch of Visit Glass, FIT Show’s first ever dedicated area for flat glass products and processing technology and machinery.
FIT Show 2019 will see the introduction of a series of trails to help guide visitors around the show content which is most relevant for them. This include a brand new installer trail, new product trail and Wood Window Alliance (WWA) backed timber trail.
For the first time ever, FIT Show will offer a three day learning programme made up of CPD approved seminar content combined with practical demonstrations and a series of business clinics with industry experts already signed up to support visitors at the May show.
Organisers have thrown their weight behind some of the industry’s biggest challenges such as the skills gap, announcing the launch of Skills Thursday which will include content specifically designed to attract new talent into the fenestration industry in partnership with a number of key training and education provides, as well as Building Our Skills.
FIT Show Event Director, Nickie West commented: “Whilst the UK is in the midst of one of the biggest political periods of uncertainty, one thing we can be sure of is that FIT Show 2019 is set to be the biggest and best yet. The fact that we’ve already surpassed the space sold for 2017 reinforces that our exhibitors understand the importance of trading through turbulent times, investing in opportunities to get infront of new and existing customers via live events such as FIT Show.
“We believe that broadening our proposition to appeal to wider audiences, introducing new products and materials, as well as moving the show to the NEC to make it more accessible to companies from wider Europe and beyond, have all played a pivotal role in securing our success for 2019.
“We’ve got the support of the industry’s key bodies such as the GGF, FENSA, Certass and CAB and have a number of key partnerships which are still to be announced which we know will further excite not only our FIT Show audience, but the wider fenestration industry.
“We’re also working harder than ever to reach our installer audience through new channels such as trade counters, FIX Radio, On The Tools and workwear providers to offer incentives that are already pulling this audience to the show, as reflected in the visitor pre-registration stats.
“Once again, we’re investing heavily in our marketing campaign, with a budget of over £600,000 and projected reach of 4 million via channels including email, social media and key trade titles. We also firmly believe Skills Thursday is a further initiative the will not only tackle a key industry issue, but help broaden our appeal to new audiences.”
FIT Show 2019 will take place at the NEC Birmingham from 21st to 23rd May and will feature up to 300 exhibitors from across the window, door, conservatory and glass industry. New features for 2019 include the addition of Visit Glass which will be dedicated to the flat glass sector and include both products and machinery.
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