Green, global and in demand
Solar & Storage Live has taken its presence global following its best-ever edition at the NEC last October. The trade exhibition for the renewable energy sector recorded its highest-ever attendance across the three-day event, with visitor numbers topping 17,000, and floorspace selling out to 425 exhibitors.
Following the unprecedented demand for floorspace, Solar & Storage Live has introduced three new events in London, Zurich and Barcelona to better represent the thriving renewable energy industry. And with just over a month to go until the London edition, six months until the Zurich and Birmingham exhibitions and eight months until the Barcelona show, all four events are selling out fast.
“Due to increased demand, we decided it was time to create another forward-thinking, challenging and exciting renewable energy exhibition that celebrates the technologies at the forefront of the transition to a greener, smarter, more decentralised energy system,” says Solar & Storage Live’s event director Tom Moon. “We will bring key stakeholders within the energy value chain together with the innovators and disruptors at the London ExCeL to showcase their technology and service solutions needed to enable change at this critical time. The industry needs to work together to build a smarter, greener energy system and soon, as we all know what the stakes are here. That’s precisely why we need Solar & Storage Live.”
Although a smaller event with around 150 exhibitors compared to 350 already committed to exhibit at its NEC counterpart in September, the London edition of Solar & Storage Live is already gathering pace as an essential date on the industry calendar. Extensive posts and re-shares on social media indicate that many brands are covering all bases by exhibiting at both UK events, while an impressive line-up of speakers has prompted a surge in pre-registration for both the London and Birmingham editions.
“I first came to Solar & Storage at the NEC six years ago with a previous employer and the show has just grown and grown ever since,” says Hazel Sturgess, head of European marketing for solar energy specialist CCL Components. “I keep waiting for the industry to plateau but it never does – renewable energy and solar power are just huge at the moment.”
Like many exhibitors for whom sustainability is a key concern, Hazel opted for Smart Display to design and build a re-usable exhibition stand for CCL Components.
“We were really happy with our Smart Display stand,” says Hazel. “It was nice and open and a perfect meeting place – the show was busy and we welcomed a lot of visitors, but it never felt too crowded.”
Smart Display will be back at the NEC this autumn, and can also adapt all brands’ stand components if they have plans to exhibit at Solar & Storage Live’s overseas editions.
“Even if a brand books a different stand size or a different orientation, our strength is reconfiguring what we have to re-use the elements wherever possible,” says Smart Display’s sales manager Ben Rose. “As well as keeping stand materials out of landfill – which is particularly poignant for a show such as Solar & Storage Live – there is the added benefit of consistency and brand reinforcement for our customers, whose stands will become more recognisable from one event to the next.”
Brands interested in exhibiting at any of the Solar & Storage Live events are advised to enquire as a matter of priority, with demand for stand space at an all-time high for all four editions.
If you would like to see what Smart Display can do for you, or would like to be inspired by our past portfolio of sustainable stand designs, get in touch today. Solar & Storage Live takes place at the London Excel on the 29-30 April, Zurich on 17-28 September, Birmingham’s NEC on 24-26 September and Barcelona on 13-14 November.
