The Independent Hotel Show 2013

With great anticipation, a suitcase or two and several packets of lime green jellybeans, Tom and I set off to London to the Independent Hotel Show at Kensington Olympia to showcase everything Wired Media can provide to the hotel and leisure industries.

The event was held over two days, displaying everything and anything hotel related, from hotel interior designers, to wifi providers. Welcoming over 250 of the finest exhibitors from all over the world and providing over 30 business sessions filled with presentations, panel discussions and Q&A sessions with industry experts, this was an ideal event to gain great brand exposure and make some fantastic contacts with people from all over the industry.

We set up our stand with our lime green stag wallpaper, laptops and jellybeans and introduced ourselves to our neighbouring exhibitors, and then we stood and waited for the masses to arrive. Within a few minutes of the show opening, the footfall was starting to gather and before we knew it, we had people coming to chat to us left right and centre about our website and digital marketing services. Our stag wallpaper was attracting a lot of admirable glances and attention!

Before the end of the day, I noted a Labrador a few stands down and wandered down to have a look. I met Charlie, the bed bug hunting, ex-army sniffer dog. He was amazing! He was trained to go into hotels and sniff out bed bugs, I was amazed – you learn something new every day!

Our first day flew by, filled with delicious free coffees from the Conran cloud and chats with suppliers, hoteliers and industry experts. At 5pm, with tired feet and hungry bellies, we left Olympia to head to our hotels for dinner and a good night’s sleep before the second day.

Bacon Sarnies and Coffee for breakfast

The next morning, we rose early and headed over to Kensington with hot cups of coffee and bacon sarnies. The day was a little slower to start, but none the less, it was still a positive and fantastic day. The stand opposite ours was a cocktail company called Shakers; they were brilliant and kept us highly entertained with their cocktail flaring and endless supplies of samples!

And so the last day of the Independent Hotel Show 2013 came to an end. We packed up our jellybeans, posters and laptops and said goodbye to our exhibitor friends to jump on trains back to good old Bristol, clutching many business cards and contacts.

It was a fantastically well organised event, with a great atmosphere and a wonderful chance to expose your business to a specifically targeted audience.

Roll on next year!