With sharing economies transforming how people travel, commute, work, read and listen, it makes sense that this trend is spilling over into trade show exhibiting. Enter Exhibitshub, an exhibit sharing marketplace launched earlier this week at ExhibitorLive.

Inspired by companies like Airbnb, Uber and Lyft, Exhibitshub has aggregated an extensive collection of custom exhibits in key convention cities that can be reserved, booked and rebranded online.

Using this new platform, exhibitors simply search exhibits by city, type, size, design and budget; select booth options that meet their criteria; and then reserve a high-quality custom exhibit not being used by its owner in its respective U.S. convention city.

Once booked, exhibits are rebranded and delivered show-ready by a network of top exhibit firms for an all-inclusive budget.

“Our model is simple: Borrow a trade show exhibit…save money; share a trade show exhibit…make money,” said Christopher Kappes, founder of Exhibitshub.

Since exhibits ship locally and are serviced by an in-city team, time and expenses are significantly reduced. Meanwhile, custom exhibit owners can monetize their exhibits when not in use, thus helping to offset exhibit ownership expense, Kappes added.

“Forty-nine percent of businesses don’t exhibit due to expense,” said Don Schmid, global congresses lead for Pfizer Corp. “Exhibitshub makes it easier and more affordable for new exhibitors.”

Exhibitshub also opens the door to a lower cost sales strategy for exhibit builders that can help them appeal to the new generation of exhibit managers and planners, Kappes said.

To celebrate its introduction and promote the regeneration of trade show exhibits, Exhibitshub is funding a new tree planted for every exhibit booked on Exhibitshub through the global reforestation projects of non-profit OneTreePlanted.

On a similar note, marketing, trade show and event services provider Fern has released OneView, a team-based and to-do list-oriented exhibitor platform designed to help exhibiting teams navigate and streamline the labor-intensive process of preparing to exhibit at a trade show.

“Until now, there hasn’t been a product in the industry that acknowledges how many people at an exhibiting company are involved in preparing for a successful exhibiting experience,” said Jeff Mason, Fern’s director of customer technology innovation.

He continued, “With OneView, it’s simple to add your transportation person, your on-site director, your marketing manager and anyone else you choose. They all get visibility into the show information and orders so that there are no surprises when show time comes.”

OneView houses all the necessities exhibiting teams need to ace the trade show preparation process, including:

·     Full team involvement; exhibitors can easily invite colleagues to help complete preparation tasks or place orders

·     A to-do list driven format that is easy for first-timers and quick for veterans

·     Live chat with Fern at any time

·     An aesthetically pleasing and modernized ordering process

·     Important documentation and information in the form of a quick reference guide that is available any time

·     Transportation, labor and material handling planning

·     Notifications and reminders about show changes

·     Full exhibit history from past shows, all in one location

OneView will be available at select Fern and NexxtShow trade shows in a progressive rollout plan.

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