Entering into 2023, there are signs that the promotional products industry is returning fully to “normal.” Among the most telling are the high expectations as the promo calendar begins in earnest next week with the field’s largest global trade shows.
The promotional products industry’s largest and longest-running trade show, The PPAI Expo, and The PSI Show, the industry’s largest European show, both open for exhibitions on Tuesday. The PPAI Expo, which returned in 2022 from a coronavirus-imposed hiatus, is surging toward pre-pandemic attendee and exhibitor levels in 2023. And The PSI Show returns live to great anticipation for the first time since the pandemic began.
The Big Show Is Back
Interest and confidence in attending live, in-person events is rallying on both sides of the Atlantic. In January 2022, The PPAI Expo returned from a one-year absence as a smaller, but extremely well-received show. This year, as the world has reopened, exhibitor and attendee numbers are surging.
“With 900 exhibiting companies and very strong distributor pre-registration numbers, I’m looking forward to experiencing the energy of the industry’s engagement live and in-person from the show floor,” says Ellen Tucker, CAE, MAS, PPAI’s vice president, revenue and expositions. “In addition, I’m looking forward to seeing new products and learning from exhibitors what trends, both product and overall, they are anticipating for 2023.”
The organizers behind The PSI Show, to be held at the Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre, are expecting a strong start to the year as well.
“The sector’s backing means a lot to us,” says PSI Director Petra Lassahn. “Even before our Ticketshop opened, we received many inquiries from visitors from Germany and abroad. Tickets have been available from mid-September now and we are very pleased with the high quality and internationalism of the already accredited trade visitors from Brazil, Denmark, Germany, Israel, Pakistan, Slovakia and Switzerland.”
Lassahn adds, “Many of the big names will return to the European exhibition floor at PSI 2023. With this said, we expect around 400 international exhibitors.”
No stranger to the global stage, The PPAI Expo 2023 has logged registered attendees from at least 16 countries.
In April, the Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair, another major event relevant to promo pros, which historically draws attendance from around the world, is set to return in person for the first time since 2019 after being canceled each of the past three years.
Multi-faceted
Promo’s largest trade shows have always been big tents, drawing concurrent events from organizations and companies in the industry. In Las Vegas and Düsseldorf, 2023 will be no exception.
At The PPAI Expo this year, several industry companies are holding events and programs in conjunction with the show or as part of it. Among them are:
- A Woman’s View, an organization created by distributor iPROMOTEu dedicated to supporting women in the promotional products industry, like it has done the last several years, is holding its annual networking reception during The PPAI Expo.
- Promotional products business and sales software provider commonsku is hosting its annual skucon conference in Las Vegas on Sunday, January 8, the day before The PPAI Expo begins.
- PPAI technology partner SAGE is hosting its SAGE Experience At The PPAI Expo education event right on The PPAI Expo show floor, and also contributing to The PPAI Expo Conference’s line-up of professional development sessions.
Also this year, PPAI is debuting The Pitch at The PPAI Expo. Similar in vein to Shark Tank and The Voice, in the event seven supplier participants will try to win over a panel of respected industry judges.
Europe’s largest promotional products trade show, The PSI Show, in recent years has been held in conjunction with viscom, the international trade show for visual communication, and PromoTex Expo, the international trade show for promotion, sports and workwear. While they won’t be separate shows in 2023, they will be reflected in various special areas of The PSI Show.
- Finishing and printing techniques in the promotional product market, as well as textiles and merchandise, will be highlighted in various special areas such as the Textile Village, the Textile Campus and the traveling exhibition ökoRAUSCH Wissenswelt.
- A new feature, “Special Show Finishing,” brings in specialists in advertising technology and product and textile finishing to give attendees the opportunity to personalize a variety of products, from mugs to USB sticks, at the show.
The Knowledge
Professional development and education have long been part of promotional products trade shows and events, large and small. Shows like The PPAI Expo and The PSI Show have an established track record of curating extensive, diverse line-ups of speakers and subjects applicable to those working within the promo field.
Through The PPAI Expo Conference, to be held January 9, PPAI is again this year bringing together experts from in and outside the promotional products field for comprehensive, enlightening professional education.
- High-profile general session speakers – such as James Pogue, PhD and Maureen Zappala – will deliver insightful keynotes that attendees can use to build their careers and businesses.
- The PPAI Expo Conference’s breakout sessions are grouped in a series of education tracks important to the promo industry, including DEI/CSR, digital transformation, the Promotional Product Works program, sales and marketing and business trends.
Through its PSI Forum, The PSI Show is bringing together more than 30 guest speakers from across Europe to share their perspectives and experiences on a range of topics. Some of the subjects the speakers will be exploring include:
- Digitalizing distribution processes
- Online marketing and stores
- Sustainability
- Communicating with customers, and more.
The Digital Future
In 2021, everyone went virtual. PPAI introduced The PPAI Expo Direct-2-You to bring exhibitors and distributors together during the pandemic. Now, PPAI has developed the Promotional Products Work Expo, an online event that draws together PPAI member distributors and their buyers for an online show experience that reinforces the value of distributors and helps buyers explore and understand the vast world of promotional products.
Similarly, the organizers of The PSI Show have no plans to reproduce their in-person event online. They intend, however, to share certain aspects and highlights of the 2023 show online.
“Well, the pandemic has accelerated a wide range of developments, especially and particularly in the digital area of the event industry,” Lassahn says. “Nevertheless, the focus is clearly on the personal reunion! So there will be no digital twin of the trade show event.
“Already today you can sense the positive mood, the excitement about the reunion and of course, the curiosity and excitement about what is yet to come.”
