Des King: Clear your calendar – packaging is making a show of itself again

Still, there is some time off for good behaviour come the autumn, as the PPMA show is this year giving way to the triennial Total (so arguably three events in May if you’re counting). Even so, with all these milestones to anticipate, next thing you know, it’ll be Christmas again. And then, guess what: it’s off to Düsseldorf for Interpack. Gott im Himmel. In the immediate present, meanwhile, this year’s event season kicks off in three weeks’ time with easyFairs’ frisky quartet of inter-related shows, including Packaging Innovations.

Most of us indulge in a love-hate ambivalence towards exhibitions, not least the organisers themselves. It’s tough enough persuading cash-strapped manufacturers to stump up for the stand space, and convincing time-strapped visitors that negotiating Spaghetti Junction is worth their while. On top of that there’s a whole potential for mishap outside of their control, which should it occur could scupper the best-laid plans.

There’s the weather; always a law unto itself in England. There’s the volatile nature of the transport network, from air-traffic controllers going slow to rail guards not going at all. There’s the likelihood of their performing a double-act: wrong leaves, rain, snow or even heat on the line, and slip-sliding away goes your attendance.

If life is a lottery, then an exhibition must be its EuroMillions equivalent. But boy, when it goes right then what a pay-out. That’s certainly what everyone who’s invested time or money in this month’s flutter will be hoping for. Two good days up in Brum would be just the tonic to help the packaging industry shrug off the palsied hand of recession, and tackle the next few months with a spring in its step.

The portents are good: the show is pretty much a sell-out, and the pre-registrations indicate a healthy crop of visitors. What it comes down to now is mindset. Whatever it is that takes you to the NEC – whether to sell; to buy; to assess; to qualify; to wrong-foot the competition – do it with conviction, do it with enthusiasm, do it with intent.

You can often scent the heady aroma of a good show the minute you walk through the door. While that’s got something to do with what’s been laid on, it has much, much more to do with the way it’s being displayed and discussed. So, whether you’re occupying stand space or aisle space during 24-25 February the only moans or groans anyone wants to hear are those of contentment.

In the meantime, practise those noises by having a happy Valentine’s Day.

Des King is a freelance journalist specialising in packaging. He can be contacted by email at packagingnews.editorial@haymarket.com

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