It’s October, the leaves are changing, and Thanksgiving and the Holidays are just around the corner. Perhaps it’s time to celebrate early this year.
Recently, we re-engineered and improved the portable SEGUE Sunrise line, which allowed us to lower the prices. For example, the VK-1905 went from $4838 to $3499. YOWSA! You can see all the lower prices on the 10 ft. and 20 ft. Sunrise portable designs in Exhibit Design Search. See the Exhibit Specials link.
In addition, we’re throwing in FREE Ground Shipping on all Sunrise and Sacagawea kits in Q4. Three full months. If you are looking for a portable display of exceptional quality with more bells and whistles than a one-man band, then Sunrise and Sacagawea are the perfect choices.
The Sunrise and Sacagawea are Made in the USA and come with a Lifetime Warranty on Workmanship. Choose from over 30 designs.
To many trade show folks, Classic Exhibits is still a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. It’s time to untangle the mystery. This month, we’re featured in Exhibit City News, online and in print. In the article, we explain our unique “unbranded” business model.
There’s a good chance you’ve heard of Classic Exhibits but don’t know all they do. Mel White, VP for marketing and business development, describes the Portland, Ore.-based company “as a chameleon that not only changes its colors, but also its shape. Repeatedly.” Every four to five years the company morphs into something different based on the needs of its more than 200 distributor partners and their customers.
So, who is Classic Exhibits right now? That depends upon who you ask—and what they need.
According to White, “Our customers come to us for a broad range of solutions. In short, we’re a job shop for over 200 distributor partners who assist their customers with tradeshows, retail displays, events and corporate environments, both for purchase and rental. We accomplish that as a ‘White Label, Unbranded’ designer and builder that’s largely invisible to end-users but not to the tradeshow and event industry. Our mission has always been to prioritize our customers’ brands in the marketplace, not only with unique designs, but also with brandable marketing tools.”
Founded in 1993, Classic started as a portable systems company, then a modular-hybrid supplier and now a design and builder of 3D structures. Currently, about 75 percent of what the company builds and ships can be classified as custom or customized. Nothing gets pulled from a shelf and shipped, even rentals. “We’re not that kind of company,” according to White. “We build to the order, stage each one, take extensive photos and create job-specific setup instructions and customized reusable packaging.”
Identifying Trends
Classic has been remarkably adept at identifying trends and creating tradeshow and event-specific solutions. Those include modular iPad and Surface stands, wireless charging stations, counters, pedestals and kiosks and tool-less LED lightboxes with accessories like tablet brackets, literature holders and adjustable shelves.
Most recently, their evolution has included modular wall systems, like the tool-less Gravitee One-Step. “As modular wall systems have come to the forefront,” says White, “we’ve worked hard to introduce new designs on Exhibit Design Search. One of the benefits of a large distributor network is identifying successful designs quickly and making them available to our partners. For example, the blending of modular walls, custom components and LED lighting has been very popular. Every week we introduce new designs to our network through our Design Monday emails.”
Being Invisible
According to Executive VP Kevin Carty, “Invisibility often comes with misunderstandings and misconceptions about who we are and what we do. We’ve never been a Portland or Northwest-focused company. From the very beginning, we’ve relied on independent distributor partners for our sales since we don’t sell direct. This wasn’t unusual in the past, but the model has become less common as our competitors have either disappeared or chosen to sell direct to end-users. In some ways, we are the last company standing that honors that model.”
Classic’s “White Label” model includes, at the distributor’s request, branded crates, instructions and mailing labels with the distributor or end-user’s logo.
Carty, who has been with the company since its inception, has watched it grow to 85 employees across four divisions, encompassing 120,000 sq.ft. outside of Portland, Ore., that uses five internal web cameras to share the progress of exhibits from design to finish with customers.
Click HERE to read the full article in Exhibit City News.
Since 1993, Classic Exhibits has been North America’s leading builder of quality trade show exhibits for professional exhibitors. Browse through 1500 contemporary displays or request a custom design personalized to your trade show marketing goals.
Find success on the trade show floor with an exhibit that reflects your marketing message… at a price that will make your CFO giddy. For more information, see http://www.classicexhibits.com.
SuperNova™ LED Lightboxes with SEG Fabric Graphics feature fast, tool-free assembly. The aluminum extrusion frames assemble with knobs, using both slide and corner connectors. Single and double-side lightboxes are available in standard and custom sizes.
Ask about shelving, literature holders, and tablet attachment options.
SuperNova Includes:
Attached UL-approved LED Modules
ColorTrue LED Lights
Durable 6063/6065 T6 Aluminum
Translucent Knobs (no shadows)
HD Silicone Edge Fabric Graphics
Single and Double-sided Frames
Standard and Custom Sizes
Lifetime Warranty on Workmanship
Reusable Packaging
Purchase and Rental Options
Custom and Portable Options
Tool-Less Assembly
Since 1993, Classic Exhibits has been North America’s leading builder of quality trade show exhibits for professional exhibitors. Browse through 1500 contemporary displays or request a custom design personalized to your trade show marketing goals.
Find success on the trade show floor with an exhibit that reflects your marketing message… at a price that will make your CFO giddy. For more information, see http://www.classicexhibits.com.
No one designs and builds better crates than Classic Exhibits. No one! Our custom wood crates are fabric-lined and jigged to ensure your booth ships safe and secure. And not just the first time. Every time.
The exhibit and crate come with detailed assembly and packing instructions to save you time during installation and dismantle. The crates are sized, divided, layered, and even the doors built to ensure maximum efficiency. Every crate is a little different because every project is different.
You’ve made an investment in a booth. The crate should do everything possible to protect that investment at the show, during transit, and even during storage. See the difference that attention to detail can make.
Since 1993, Classic Exhibits has been North America’s leading builder of quality trade show exhibits for professional exhibitors. Browse through 1500 contemporary displays or request a custom design personalized to your trade show marketing goals.
Find success on the trade show floor with an exhibit that reflects your marketing message… at a price that will make your CFO giddy. For more information, see http://www.classicexhibits.com.
Product launches can be terrifying, like our NEW SuperNova™ Tool-Less Lighboxes. Did we successfully communicate the features and benefits? Will customers embrace it? Will sales grow and how quickly?
Drum roll please…. To date, SuperNovasales have FAR exceeded our aggressive expectations. It’s the first (and only) tool-free solution without compromises in durability, strength, or assembly. And it’s just as strong as our previous version but 80% faster to set up.
Thank you for your orders and your feedback. It’s been pleasantly terror-free. See the video to learn more about SuperNova.
2020 Portable Modular Awards (PMA)
In 2014, Classic Exhibits and other manufacturers urged EXHIBITOR Magazine to recognize portable modular design. Which they did in 2015. Since then, we have been a sponsor and advocate for the Portable Modular Awards (PMA), including the People’s Choice Award.
Over the past 5 years, the PMA has continued to grow, and the award program has become a must attend event at EXHIBITORLIVE.
Best 10-by-10-Foot Exhibit
Best Fabric Exhibit – An exhibit comprising predominantly fabric components
Best Use of Graphics – Graphics for the entire exhibit and/or individual applications or purposes, such as info graphics, way-finding systems, product-display graphics, overhead-signage design, large-format graphics, etc.
Best In-Line Exhibit (10-by-20s, 10-by-30s, etc.)
Best International Design – An exhibit designed by a company outside of North America or an exhibit designed by a North American firm but launched at a show outside of North America.
Best Island Exhibit Less Than 600 Square Feet
Best Island Exhibit 600 to 1,000 Square Feet
Best Island Exhibit More Than 1,000 Square Feet
Best Reconfigurable Exhibit – An exhibit that can be reconfigured to accommodate various footprints, goals, shows, etc. Entrants must submit photos of the booth in at least two different configurations.
Best Rental Exhibit – A portable, modular, or system exhibit comprising predominantly rented components.
Best Tabletop Exhibit – Any exhibit construction (e.g., panel, modular, pop-up, briefcase, etc.) displayed atop a table measuring 10 feet or less in length.
Best Use of Technology – Innovative and effective use of technology within a portable/modular exhibit
We are finalizing our entries and encourage you to do the same, especially on any Classic-built projects. The early entry date is 9/27, but you can submit as late as 10/11. Let us know how we can assist you.
Special Podcast about Show Services, NAB, and Trends
In a 22-minute podcast, Sue Huff, Director of Global Conventions at Medtronic, discusses rising material handling costs, attendee demographics, the impact of show organizers on rates based on a presentation HCEAConnect.
Other topics include: NAB material handling model, exclusive and non-exclusive rates, how associations can help, and how to impact change.
At one point, Sue described how many days it would take a forklift driver to move one single crate based on the drayage rate. If the material handling rate is $135 per hundred weight, the cost for a single crate was $1,500. Applying the union workers’ wage of $47 per hour against the crate cost, it worked out to be 32 hours to move one crate or 4 days.
Listen NOW to hear the full interview and her analysis.
Funky Rentals
As you know, Classic Rental Solutions has an extensive rental inventory of standard and customized inlines, islands. and accessories. What you may not know is how often we fulfill funky rental requests, like large quantities of counters, monitor stands, lightboxes, and charging stations.
As a division of Classics, CRS can easily accommodate most
orders since the materials are “in-house” and not purchased from another
supplier. A few recent examples:
Over 40 Counters with Storage (multiple times)
45 Backlit Gravitee Counters
14 Double-sided Monitor Kiosks
18 Bistro Charging Tables
12 LED Lightboxes (varying sizes)
The Power of a Design and Designers
We’ve said this before, but it bears repeating. Other than price, the single biggest factor in closing an exhibit sale is the design and the designer.
When a Classic Designer has direct access to the end-user,
either as a Classic or a “Distributor Designer,” the closing percentage
jumps significantly (to around 75%).
Designers ask different questions and are more likely to hit
the mark on the first rendering when they participate in the discovery meeting.
Including them saves time, saves money, and results in more sales.
