The UK’s annual In-Store Show – part of Marketing Week Live – took place in London’s Olympia on 29 and 30 June. STI Line had a large, imposing and busy stand there; Managing Director Paul Clarke reports for us on this important and vibrant industry event.

STI: You have been to the In-Store Show several times. Was 2010 different for you?

Paul: “This year’s In-Store Show had a real buzz about it and provided the perfect platform to showcase our fresh identity as part of STI Group. As always, the event delivered an exceptional audience of both existing clients and prospects to whom we were able to demonstrate our new winning combination of local market dynamism and truly global capabilities.”

STI: Your stand was very busy. Why do you think that was?

Paul: “Our stand was one of the busiest in the entire show – and I’m sure this was not solely a result of our prime location next to the STI Line-sponsored bar! Visitors flocked to see our innovative, high quality off-shelf promotional merchandising units and POS displays as well as the fascinating interactive eye tracking demo we presented on the stand.”

STI: Why is shopper insight important?

Paul: “STI Line’s designers specialise in producing in-store displays which not only look great but also catch the shopper’s eye, draw attention to the product and consistently deliver enhanced sales results. So we decided to give visitors to the In-Store Show a unique opportunity to see POS through the shopper’s eyes.

The demo, run by specialist shopper and retail research company SheridanGlobal, featured its exclusive ShopperView technology. After ‘shopping’ in a specially-created area of our stand wearing adapted micro camera recording equipment, visitors were able to review their own footage with an expert.

This enabled us to highlight the importance of understanding shopper behaviour and explain how a shopper-based approach – like ours – improves in-store visibility and presence. It was a very popular feature with trade visitors and the attending journalists alike.

STI: What do you think about the In-StoreShow overall?

Paul: “The attendance at the event was some 15% higher than in 2009. It certainly felt like that to us and it’s encouraging to reflect that, at a time when the world economic horizon is not without a few clouds, our own industry continues to inspire, grow and flourish.”

Paul Clarke
Managing Director
STI Line