Rather than summing up what an exhibition stand costs, it’s often better to ask “what turns up on build day?” Two quotes with the same headline can be different jobs: one is a finished stand, while the other is a pile of panels and a hope.
This article delves into what you might expect for any hired exhibition stand build: included graphics, a unique design, a finished floor, and so on. Tick what is named, and remember that anything blank is a risk you will pay for later, usually at the worst moment in the hall.
The Lines That Should Be On Every Hire Quote
A managed hire package, at minimum, should list these:
- A project manager who owns the dates
- Design, drawings, and a 3D render you can sign off
- The structure itself: walls, returns, store area (if you asked for one)
- Graphics for this campaign
- Floor finish
- Lighting and a plan for cables
- Delivery into the venue
- Install and dismantle
- RAMS and the other exhibition stand regulation paperwork
- Storage details (if reusing for a future event)
Of these, the project manager line is the one people often skip because it does not show in the 3D. It is also the line that stops a drawing error becoming a night of overtime. If nobody is named, you become the project manager!
What Is Usually Extra?
These costs often sit outside the headline even when the stand looks complete in the render:
- Furniture
- Screens and players
- A lockable store if it was not in the first layout
- Hanging signs, if the hall allows them
- Specialist electrics beyond a basic distribution board
- Late artwork or a reprint after sign-off
- Night or overtime labour if the slot slips
None of these are automatically a rip-off: they just need to be visible. Ask for an itemised page for best results.
Furniture and storage are the classic surprises. The 3D render might show a sofa that the quote does not. Then, on build day, you might find someone offering you a furniture hire catalogue at show prices!
As for storage, you won’t even see that in the render, but you’ll need to pay for it if you’re re-using your stand again for another show.
What Is Never In The Hire Invoice
Hall space is always between you and the organiser. Power beyond what your contractor specified is also separate, as are hosted-buyer programmes, staffing, lead scanners, rigging fees, and insurance for your samples.
It should be obvious, but parking, staffing, and accommodation are also a separate fees.
People mash all these into “the cost of the stand” and ask their stand builder to cover them. This is incorrect and the two cost tracks should be separate; you can use our UK stand cost guide to get the wider picture. This article only covers the costs an exhibition stand builder will charge you.
Catering, plants, and a coffee machine are not part of your stand hire either. They can make the stand really “pop”, but they belong on a show ops list. Bringing your own equipment is often the best way to save.
How Do You Test A Thin Quote?
Ask four questions in writing:
- Who is on site if a panel is damaged on install night?
- Who files the RAMS, and when?
- Is the floor covered in the price?
- What happens to the graphics after breakdown?
A contractor who can answer these knows their way around things. A contractor who says “we will confirm that later” is likely deferring responsibility to you.
Add a fifth question here if your exhibit is at a major UK event space: who holds the slot if the previous exhibitor overruns? That’s just an ordinary Tuesday at the NEC…
Graphics, Damage, And What You Can Keep
You should assume you do not keep the walls, as these return to our stock afterwards. You can keep the graphics if you like to reuse or display elsewhere.
Damage is the same. Ask what a scuffed panel costs and whether there is a deposit. Don’t wait until the crate comes back with a hole! Photograph the stand at open and at close.
The Booth Exhibits™ hire offer is a service conversation, not a published catalogue. We will not invent a fake inclusions list. The quote for your show is the list that matters, and it should use the headings listed above.
A Walk Through A Complete Quote
A complete page looks dull, which is the point. It will include:
- Design hours.
- Structure.
- Print.
- Floor.
- Lights.
- Delivery.
- Labour in.
- Labour out.
- Paperwork.
- Extras.
A Short Checklist You Can Paste Into An Email
Copy this into the brief:
- Show, hall, plot size, dates
- Hire, not buy
- Must-have: meetings / demo / store / screen
- Please itemise: design, structure, graphics, floor, lighting, delivery, install, dismantle, RAMS
- Please flag extras: furniture, AV, hanging signs, overtime
Send that and you will get quotes you can compare. Book a call if you’d like us to mark the list against your plot.
What “Turn-key” Really Means
“Turn-key” is a sales word, so make it concrete. It means you can arrive after install, put product on the counter, and work the show. It does not mean you arrive and see a carcass with a van of boxes.
Agree on a ready time, not a build day. A clock time on the day before open, or the morning of open if the hall is tight. If that time is missing, your turn-key plan falls apart.
Also agree on who’ll inspect the stand with you at handover. It takes ten minutes or less just to check lights, doors, screens, and the store lock. That inspection saves you from last-minute tragedies on show day.
Inclusions Change With Plot Type
An inline 3×3 does not need the same list as an island. Why? Islands need more finish because every side is open and seen. Corners, meanwhile, need two graphic faces, not one.
Double-decker displays are the most complex, and need extra rules, extra time, and extra labour. If the quote uses the same inclusion block for all three, you should ask them to mark what was stripped out.
Small plots still need a floor decision and a cable plan. Those do not vanish just because the stand is small: they just get ignored until someone trips.
After The Show
At the end of it all, inclusions should also cover dismantle and removal. They should say when the plot will be clear and who takes leftover prints. If you want to keep a graphic, mention that before the build so everyone is on the same page.
Ask for a short close-out note: damage, extras billed, what was left on the stand. It’s only one page and stops a quiet invoice arriving a month later.
If you might hire again next year, say so! The second brief is faster when the first quote already listed every line.
What Does Your Hire Quote Include?
We’re a London exhibition stand builder with the right tools and expertise to make your brand shine. We’d love to discuss your hire options and package inclusions today!
