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Posts Tagged ‘Euro LT Custom Modular’

Word on the Street — May 17th thru May 21st

May 23rd, 2010 Mel White 1 COMMENT

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

April Showers Bring May Flowers . . .

While it’s certainly true for those of us living in the rainy Pacific NW, in this case I’m speaking metaphorically.

This past week has been crazy good at Classic Exhibits and ClassicMODUL. Crazy with new orders and new design requests. For everyone who has been in the business for any length of time, you know just how odd that is. Historically, about the second week of May, we go from “go-go” to “no-go” as we head into the summer season. NOT this year!

The last two weeks of April were abnormally busy in our Design Department. We took notice of it but were unsure if the designs were spec designs or just folks planning for the late summer or spring. Well, we got our answer the first week of May when we found ourselves very busy turning those designs into orders. And that continues still!

April Showers at Classic Exhibits

April Showers / May Flowers

The truly interesting part is that it is not just standard 10 x 10 and 10 x 20 inline kits, which you might be assuming. Rather, it’s a  mixture of custom inlines from Visionary Designs, Euro LT Custom Modular, and even islands.

And it appears to be the same for ClassicMODUL. We have seen an influx of metal orders for significant island and inline projects.

As someone who believes in jinxes, I hesitate to say this, but May 2010 will be the largest May in Classic Exhibits’ history. Which still seems so crazy to me, particularly as I look ahead at the next three weeks and see a full schedule for early June as well.

So thanks are in order. THANKS to you all. We certainly appreciate it and hope that we are serving you well. And thanks to the Classic team for rising to the challenge. How is it going for you all? Are you seeing the same uptick in spring sales?

Be well and have a safe and restful weekend.

–Kevin Carty

http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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15 Notable Exhibit Projects in 2009

December 28th, 2009 Mel White COMMENTS
2009 Notable Exhibit Projects

2009 Notable Exhibit Projects

We may be jumping the gun a bit, since it’s still early December, but we thought we’d review the Top 15 Notable Exhibit Projects in 2009. How do we define “notable?” To be honest, it’s a little arbitrary (actually it’s probably a lot arbitrary). After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, we relied on the following criteria to guide us as we made our selection:

  • Overall Creativity
  • Representative Design Trends
  • Graphic Treatment
  • Customization 

If you don’t see your notable project on the list, chances are it just missed the cut or it shipped from Classic without graphics. We decided to exclude counters and workstations from the list — not because there weren’t any creative designs but because there were so many. Nearly every day we shipped standard or customized counters, pedestals, and workstations.

The following, although listed numerically, are in no particular ranking. 

TOP 15 (drum roll please)

  1. Watchguard — (04/13 and 04/14):  Visionary Designs 10′ x 20′ with LED header lights and MOD-1219 Counter. Re-configures into a 20′ x 20′ Island.
  2. Odyssey — (08/26): This is actually a ClassicMODUL project (but let’s not quibble). Hybrid 20′ x 40′ island with showcases and multiple conference rooms.
  3. SpaBooker — (10/06): Custom Perfect 20 Portable Hybrid Display with 2-sided projector screen.
  4. Boston Scientific — (06/10):  Fun project. All wood custom exhibit with fully assembled counters. Eight lightboxes were mounted above the counters along the backwall.
  5. Cumberland — (11/13): Euro LT 10′ x 20′ Custom Modular Exhibit. There are photos showing it at our facility and at the show with graphics. Excellent example of a modular laminate display and custom LTK-1001 (modified) tapered counters.
  6. ESPN — (10/21): This may seem a little puzzling until you watch Monday Night Football. This is the powder- coated blue aluminum frame for the on-field desk. The custom house that ordered the frame completed the build.
  7. Arizona State — (05/21): We love a challenge. We built this using Aero Overhead aluminum tubing. Optima Graphics printed and fitted the graphics to the frame.
  8. Marine Stewardship — (02/26): Visionary Designs 10′ x 10′ Hybrid Exhibit. A Classic distributor sent us the design. We engineered and built it according to their specifications. There was even a complementary table top display.
  9. Verizon — (09/21): Visionary Designs Modified VK-2044 Hybrid Exhibit. There have been many VK-2044 (iPhone) designs built this year, and this is an excellent example of how this very popular design changes to accommodate any company’s marketing goals.  
  10. Viatech — (01/27): We liked this Perfect 20 Portable Hybrid Display so much that it became a kit. See VK-1803 for the kit version.
  11. Guidance Software — (02/03): Like the VK-2044, the Visionary Designs VK-1032 Hybrid Display has been a monster hit all year. It’s got it all — large monitor mount, counter, brochure holders, large tension fabric graphics, and sexy header.
  12. Geico — (07/27): New kits rarely remain constant for long. This is a customized Magellan Miracle VK-1063 with a practical modification of a Perfect 10 VK-1602 counter.
  13. Engility — (09/01): Without a doubt, the Perfect 10 VK-1501 Hybrid Display was a popular choice all year. We could have chosen several to represent this kit, but the graphics on this one made it our first choice.
  14. BriteCore — (09/08): Euro LT Custom Modular LTK-5207 Modified Exhibit. Very elegant 10′ x 20′ inline.
  15. ConnectiMED — (11/23): Magellan MOR VK-1077 Hybrid 10′ x 10′ with a modified MOD-1235 Workstation. Upscale and inexpensive.

Classic Exhibits Displays in 2009

We would enjoy hearing your comments on these projects. Are you seeing any design trends in your market for 2010? Please share.

–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com
Classic Exhibits Network (LinkedIn)

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Word on the Street — December 14th thru December 18th

December 20th, 2009 Mel White COMMENTS
Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

My Glass is Rarely Half Full

Those of you who know me well, know that I am often overly optimistic. My glass is rarely half full. Rather, it’s often overflowing from trying to get a gallon of 2% milk into a juice tumbler.

Every year at this time, we all get either a huge rush of speculative business, or we find ourselves calling the phone company “just to make sure” our lines are still working because the phones are not ringing.

This December has been quite different. The phones are certainly NOT ringing off the hook, but they are steady. More importantly, they are for very real projects. In past years, we would get calls for a 20′ x 30′ with a $75k budget . . . if we can build in 5 days. Or my personal favorite, “I have this project that just landed on my desk that is ours. I just need to have the pricing in two hours.” It’s then we realize that three of our PM’s have been quoting the same project to three other customers as well.

I am not trying to sound to snide. Just the opposite. This December has just been a pleasant surprise. We’re seeing projects where customers are being proactive and spending quality time planning for Q1 of 2010. Granted the designs and scope of the projects are certainly not as grand as they were in 2006-2008, but they do have substance and you can tell there has been a lot of thought and care inserted into the process. All of which demonstrates great potential signs for business as a whole.

Here are some great examples of current projects:

  • A 170 Unit Table Top Order. The client ordered four-panel Intro Folding Fabric Panel Table Tops with graphics and table throws. Surprised? Don’t be! We still sell quite a lot of the Intro product line.
  • A Bank Interior Project. The project will utilize MODUL extrusion and SEG graphics in a unique fashion.
  • A Beautiful 20 x 30 Island. The island consists of ClassicMODUL extrusion, Euro LT Custom Modular panels, raised flooring, and large Aero Overhead Hanging Signs for a Medical Tech company that is launching a new product at an early March Show.

Those are just some highlights along with the normal workflow of 10′ x 10′ and 10′ x 20′ Hybrid Systems and Quadro Pop Ups going through production everyday.

Cautiously, I have begun filling my milk glass for 2010. While it’s nearing the brim, it’s not overflowing just yet. 🙂

How about you? Is what we are seeing sound familiar? Tell me what your December has been like.

Oh yes, one last item . . . . On Friday, you received an email from Classic with the subject line:  Our Gift to You this Holiday Season. I encourage you to consider this showroom offer for several reasons. First, it’s an unbelievable deal on a two-sided backlit lightbox tower (MOD-1259). Second, it demonstrates Silicone Edge Graphics to your team and to your customer. You’ll be seeing a lot more SEG graphics throughout the year. And third, it’s a really cool example of backlit tension fabric graphics.

Have a safe and restful weekend!

–Kevin Carty

http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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