The London job in one paragraph

London is around 165 miles from our warehouse, which means a stand build at ExCeL is an early start rather than a morning job. That is fine, and it is the reason we plan London differently from everything else. The van is loaded the night before, the driver has the organiser manual with your build-up slot on it, and we work backwards from the marshal on the loading bay rather than forwards from when we fancy leaving.

The upside of the distance is that we are not a London supplier competing on being nearby. We are competing on owning the kit, which matters more when something needs swapping on day two of a five-day show.

The venues

ExCeL London on the Royal Victoria Dock is the UK's largest events venue by floor area, and the one we have worked longest. Recent ExCeL bookings have come through exhibition stand activation agencies, running branded Whack a Mole, Batak Pro and Magnetic Topgear leader board combinations across multi-day shows, plus Prize Crane Arcade Grabbers with branded front and side panels.

Olympia London in Kensington is the older hall and the more architectural one, with the galleried Grand Hall changing what a stand can look like. Wembley Stadium is a different proposition again, because the activation spaces sit inside a working stadium and around Wembley Park rather than on an exhibition floor. We supplied a branded package there combining a full-size Batak Pro, a wrapped football table and branded magnetic leaderboards, which suited guests moving between hospitality, presentation and networking areas.

Further out, Farnborough International in Hampshire covers the South East end of things. We have supplied stands there since 2019, usually a Batak Pro and leader board package or a branded Prize Crane.

What tends to go to London stands

These are compact and mains-powered, and they are quiet enough for a shell scheme, because London stands are rarely as big as the budget suggests.

Practical things about delivering into London

Three of them come up every time. Emissions zones apply to our vehicles like anybody else's, and they are priced into the quote rather than appearing on the invoice afterwards. Build-up slots at the big halls are enforced strictly, so the useful thing to send us is the organiser manual rather than a rough date. And loading at ExCeL and Olympia goes through shared bays with a marshal directing traffic, which means the kit needs to be off the van and moving in one trip.

We use our own drivers and our own vehicles rather than putting a hire on a courier network. On a London show that is the difference between a delayed delivery being a phone call to somebody who can act on it, and a tracking number.

Where to go next

If you know the venue, the venue pages have what we have supplied at each. If you know the type of day but not the kit, trade show games and conference entertainment work from the event backwards.