What to Wear to a Trade Show

In the modern business landscape, where many sales and marketing activations have moved to digital formats, trade shows offer a valuable opportunity to put a face to your brand and add a human touch to your company.

With the right people, face-to-face activations, such as those at exhibitions, can send trust signals and build memorable connections that set you apart in your industry. With the wrong people or poor presentation, these activations could tarnish your company’s perception.

To ensure the correct impact, you should be selective about who works your stand and how they are presented. In this guide, we dive into the importance of presentation and what to wear at trade shows.

An important yet often overlooked aspect of exhibiting is what to wear! Clothing, like your exhibition stand, is among the first things passersby notice when approaching your stand, and so, it’s important that it gives off the right impression.

One of the core benefits of exhibiting is that you can put a face to the company, which helps you be remembered long after the show. However, you must make sure this impression is positive. Your exhibiting team should dress professionally and in alignment with your brand.

Whether you are exhibiting at a trade show or visiting, smart business attire is usually the norm.

As an exhibitor, you might find that your company sets the rules or provides guidance on what to wear to ensure everybody looks professional. Most require you to wear full business dress, such as suits or smart dresses, while others prefer company-branded apparel, depending on the industry. For a uniform look, many companies will ask you to coordinate ties, shoes or suit colours.

At consumer shows, some companies allow a more relaxed business-casual look, but it really depends on the industry. If you’re in doubt, always opt for the smarter option.

If you’re a budget holder, it’s best to visit dressed in business attire. However, if you’re just exploring the industry without representing a specific company, business-casual is often acceptable.

Business Professional/ Formal:

Focus on neutral colours, tailored lines and conservative appearances.

For men, this might be dark, tailored suits, button-down shirts, ties and leather shoes. For women, this could be tailored suits with trousers or skirts, professional dresses, blazers, blouses, brogues, or closed-toe heels.

Business-casual: 

Usually comfortable yet polished looks allowing for more style expression than full business attire – nothing too tight or too baggy.

• Tops: Blazers, cardigans, blouses, collared shirts and polos
• Bottoms: Chinos, dress slacks, knee-length skirts and sometimes dark-wash tailored jeans
• Footwear: Loafers, ankle boots, ballet flats, and clean, simple trainers

At all exhibitions, you should dress professionally; however, professionalism can vary from industry to industry, so it’s worth tailoring your attire based on your own industry and the type of event. For example, the professional attire at shows like Spring Fair or Crufts may differ from DSEI or London Packaging Week. To gain an idea of what is acceptable for a particular show, you can always view show videos from that particular event.

Consider whether you will be serving B2B or B2C audiences, as this may influence your clothing choices.

Working a trade show is often more tiring than people expect. You have to travel to and from the event, and work long hours, many of which will be on your feet.

When deciding what to wear to the event, it is a good idea to wear layers. Trade show halls can get warm, and you’ll likely be on your feet more than a typical working day. Factor in temperature changes to help you stay comfortable throughout the day.

We always recommend packing an essentials bag, including items like deodorant, perfume, wet wipes, mints, and water in your travel bag, which can help you stay refreshed during long days.

If you’re wearing heels at your event, it is always a good idea to bring a comfortable pair of flats to change into!

While clothing is important, impressions are usually formed through a collection of factors! Your exhibition stand, place in the hall, staff presentation and approachability are all important.

While you’re considering professional attire, you may also want to think about the approachability of your team and body language on the stand, as, without thought, you can inadvertently introduce threshold barriers for visitors.

Body language should be open and welcoming, and staff should be confident in initiating and maintaining conversations with guests. Play to your team’s strengths and be particular about who works the stand. If needed, you can always invest in staff training and practice sessions to build confidence.

At Quadrant2Design, we design and build over 600 exhibition stands per year. Every month, our wonderful PR Manager, Maggie Clemence, visits exhibitions to catch up with our clients and stay ahead of the industry’s latest trends and developments. We thought we would end by sharing some of our favourites trade show outfits worn by Maggie from the last year!

Though our favourite outfit by far would have to be Maggie and Shainna in PJs at The Bed Show!

Impressions at trade shows are rarely shaped by just one standalone factor. Rather, it is how a wealth of elements come together to form the image of your company.

A significant factor in this image is the exhibition stand. The quality and design of your stand serve as the visual representation of your company, so they must accurately reflect who you are and what you do.

If you would like to design an exhibition stand that effectively captures and communicates your brand, contact our design team for a free, no-obligation proposal at design@quadrant2design.com or 01202 723 500.