Shared exhibition stands highlight collective expertise

Case: Finnish Defence and Aerospace Industries (PIA) & Betonipuisto

A shared exhibition stand is often commissioned by an association, industry federation, or business cluster that wants to ensure broad participation in an important trade fair. Two strong examples are the Finnish Defence and Aerospace Industries (PIA) with its national pavilions and the Concrete Park (Betonipuisto) by the Finnish Concrete Industry Federation. Both showcase how powerful shared exhibition stands can be when designed and implemented by Messua.

The Finnish Defence and Aerospace Industries (PIA) represents companies in Finland’s defence, aerospace, space, and security sectors. PIA has repeatedly demonstrated the benefits of shared exhibition stands at international industry events. A joint pavilion not only increases visibility for Finnish companies but also helps balance differences in company size. Even small companies can appear on a larger stage – a key factor in the defence and security industry, where activities often take place at state level.

“PIA’s long-standing collaboration with Messua has produced functional and eye-catching shared stands, which as national pavilions serve both the participating companies and Finland as a whole,” says PIA Secretary General Tuija Karanko.

The collaboration between PIA and Messua has lasted for over a decade and proven both fruitful and cost-effective.

“Messua was selected as our partner through a competitive bidding process, which we renew from time to time to ensure cost efficiency. The cooperation has worked very well – they increasingly understand our needs and design the overall concept professionally. They also handle all technical communications and construction, which saves our association’s limited resources significantly.”

Planning for the Eurosatory trade fair in France in June 2024 began more than a year in advance. PIA reserved the exhibition space immediately after the previous fair in 2022 due to the event’s popularity. This marked the third time PIA collaborated with Messua for Eurosatory.

“The approximately 300-square-metre national pavilion showcased 16 Finnish companies. The pavilion’s visual identity highlighted Finland, and we made strong use of PIA’s communication strategy slogans, such as No-nonsense combined with the word Finland.

At the centre was a shared lounge area with catering and seating for guests. There was also an information desk staffed by our own personnel. Companies could reserve as little as six square metres or up to about twenty. Messua managed to fit everything in perfectly, and the result was highly functional,” Karanko explains.

A key element of the pavilion was a large meeting room – which turned out to be extremely popular.

“One exhibitor said they had never seen anything like it at a trade fair. The meeting room was impressive, spacious, and featured a fun sauna theme, which made it even more attractive. In addition, two companies had their own smaller meeting rooms, but even their larger delegations used the shared facility.”

Betonipuisto promotes the concrete industry together

Betonipuisto is a shared stand bringing together 18 companies from the concrete and construction industries at the FinnBuild trade fair from 8–10 October 2024.

Product development and quality assurance in concrete are built on cooperation, and Betonipuisto embodies this spirit of collaboration. For visitors, it offers new ideas, insights, and a mix of inspiration and facts about concrete and the companies behind it. The first Betonipuisto was launched at FinnBuild in 2018, and the 2024 edition marks the third joint stand.

“Shared exhibition stands are often an excellent way for companies to achieve more with fewer resources. There are synergy benefits both in quality and cost-efficiency. Together we can create a more striking presence and include stronger elements and experiences than individual companies could manage alone. Betonipuisto is also a joint branding project for concrete construction as a whole,” says Jussi Mattila, CEO of the Finnish Concrete Industry Federation.

Mattila appreciates how Messua has supported the project from multiple angles – from visual and spatial design to the creation and management of Betonipuisto’s graphic identity and website. The same website is still in use today. Messua has also taken care of pre-event and post-event marketing, as well as individual exhibition designs for member companies’ own stands.

“It has also been important to us that Messua handled the practical arrangements for the programme, such as organising presentations and coordinating the evening reception with catering and entertainment. Based on the two previous editions, I feel the event has been a success, and both the companies and their guests have been pleased. I believe FinnBuild 2024 will bring the same results,” Mattila concludes.