Conferences with Exhibitions

How an Exhibition Changes a Conference

Adding an exhibition to a conference brings a different set of logistics. Decide early whether the conference or the exhibition is the main attraction. That choice shapes the budget, programme, opening hours, marketing, visitor access and what you can offer exhibitors.

Conferences with exhibitions may be open to the public, restricted to a particular trade or profession, or invitation-only. The audience and admission arrangements will affect registration, marketing and access control.

Choosing the Right Venue

An exhibition adds requirements that not every conference venue can meet. Plan around your expected audience. Some visitors will attend briefly, while others may need several days and overnight accommodation. Good public transport connections and suitable road access make the event easier to attend, particularly for day visitors. Check rail and bus services for your dates to spot engineering works or reduced timetables, then check again nearer the event, as disruption information changes.

A venue experienced in hosting exhibitions can help reassure prospective exhibitors, although your audience profile will matter more to them than the venue's prestige.

When comparing venues, check:

• usable rather than headline floor area, ceiling height, floor loading limits and permitted stand heights
• rigging restrictions, storage and waste removal
• loading bays, goods lifts and vehicle access for build-up and breakdown
• power, internet and lighting in the exhibition area, and what they cost
• step-free routes between the conference rooms and the exhibition hall
• accessible toilets, seating, catering points and hearing support near the stands

Budget for security, cleaning, furniture, stand services and staffing, not just venue hire and stand income.

Your situation may be slightly different. ask a question below ↓ and our editorial team will reply with our advice.

Programme, Layout and Exhibitors

Breaks need to be long enough for delegates to visit stands, and serving refreshments in or next to the exhibition hall can encourage footfall. Minimise poorly visited areas and check that every stand has a clear, accessible approach.

Registration may need separate streams for full conference delegates and exhibition-only visitors. Badges can show names, organisations and access categories, which helps staff control entry to sessions. Make registration information accessible too.

Explain who receives registration data, how badge scanning works and what exhibitors may do with the leads they collect. Scanning a badge is not blanket permission for later marketing, and UK GDPR and PECR may be relevant.

Issue an exhibitor manual and contract well in advance. These should cover stand sizes, what the stand fee includes, extra charges, payment dates, build-up and breakdown times, deliveries, power orders, insurance, construction rules, and cancellation, postponement and refunds. Do not promise visitor numbers or marketing exposure you cannot support with evidence.

Safety, Insurance and Legal Checks

Agree responsibilities for fire safety and emergency procedures with the venue, including evacuation arrangements for disabled visitors. Check that the layout preserves escape routes and safe occupancy limits. Following venue rules does not on its own discharge your responsibilities as organiser.

In Great Britain, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has guidance on event safety, and construction work during build-up and breakdown can fall within the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. Ask the venue and stand contractors which CDM duties apply and who will fulfil them. Northern Ireland has separate regulations, enforced by HSENI. Coordinate contractors, obtain risk assessments, separate vehicles from pedestrians, and never allow stands to be dismantled while visitors remain in the area.

There is no single conference licence. Requirements depend on activities and location, such as alcohol sales or some entertainment. Check what the venue's existing permissions actually cover. In England and Wales a Temporary Event Notice may be relevant; arrangements differ elsewhere in the UK, so ask your local authority.

Venues commonly require organisers and exhibitors to carry public liability insurance. Check the required limits and activities covered, and whether employers' liability insurance is also required. Do not assume the venue's policy covers your liabilities.

Check whether you must register for VAT and how it applies to admission charges, stand packages and sponsorship, particularly where overseas businesses are involved. Accessibility duties also apply, under the Equality Act 2010 in Great Britain and separate legislation in Northern Ireland.

The Association of Event Organisers (AEO) publishes voluntary guidance that can help first-time organisers, though it does not replace legal requirements. Before opening, review opening hours, access arrangements and responsibilities with the venue and exhibitors.