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great flame follows a little spark, wrote Dante in "The Divine Comedy." While penned in the 1300s, this truism is alive and well today, as evidenced by the myriad exhibit- and retail-industry aficionados who trek to EuroShop, The Global Retail Trade Fair. Held once every three years in Dusseldorf, Germany, EuroShop draws more than 100,000 attendees in search of not only products and services, but their own little sparks of inspiration. While retailers anticipate that this creative go juice will eventually lead to a sales firestorm, exhibit designers hope the show's inspirational embers will ignite an inferno of inventive exhibit designs for years to come. Thus, along with a host of U.S. exhibit designers seeking inspiration in Deutschland, EXHIBITOR staff packed up their cameras, memory cards, and comfortable shoes, and headed to EuroShop 2011. Our goal: Bring readers a bevy of sparks to ignite the fires of invention in their own exhibit programs. The 2011 show was not only a smorgasbord of ideas, but it was also the largest EuroShop ever. The show hosted 2,038 exhibitors (up from 1,911 in 2008), which hailed from 53 different countries. Attendee numbers were also on the upswing, as the 2011 show drew 106,000 attendees compared to 104,766 in 2008. Plus, according to show organizers, visitors hailed from more than 90 countries, and the show experienced a sharp increase in the number of attendees from Italy, Brazil, and the United States. In fact, 60 U.S. companies took part in the exhibition, which totaled nearly 1.2 million net square feet within 17 exhibition halls. The show itself was divided into four different segments: EuroConcept (lighting, store furnishings, shop fitting, etc.), EuroSales (visual marketing, sales promotion, and point-of-sale marketing), EuroCIS (information technology and retail-security technology), and EuroExpo (exhibit and event design and construction). Needless to say, EXHIBITOR staff spent considerable time in each segment - and seemingly in every nook and cranny the show had to offer. In addition to covering the show, EXHIBITOR offered its own awards program - the EuroShop Awards - honoring excellence in EuroShop exhibit design. Open to all exhibitors, the program drew entries from eight countries and was judged during the show by a panel of international exhibit-design experts. Three Best of Show winners and four Honorable Mentions were announced and presented with their awards on site at Messe Dusseldorf. The following pages, then, offer some of the most inspirational sparks we found at the show. But if you're left wanting more, visit our EuroShop microsite at www.ExhibitorOnline.com/EuroShop, which features more photos, profiles of our EuroShop Award winners, info about our judges, blogs from our visit, association-related happenings, and more. E |
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Magazine Topics
Marketplace
- Audiovisual Equipment
- Convention Centers
- Event Design and Production
- Exhibit Fabrication
- Exhibit Producers
- Exhibit Rental
- Experiential Agency
- Flooring
- Graphics
- International Exhibit Producers
- Kiosks
- Lead Retrieval
- Modular Exhibit Systems
- Portable Display Systems
- Shipping and Transportation
- All Companies
eTrak Online Sessions
Feb. 5, 2026
3048R Sales and Marketing Alignment: How to Get ‑ and Stay ‑ on the Same Page
Feb. 10, 2026
3011R How to Grow Your Brand: Incorporating Brand Marketing into Your Exhibit Program
Feb. 19, 2026
4101R Boost Up: Promote Yourself from Service Provider to Strategic Business Partner
Mar. 3, 2026
6020R The @show Experience: Understand the Essentials of Exhibit Design
Mar. 10, 2026
7058R Authors Executive Series: Thrive Under Deadlines: Strategies for Success
All Sessions >>
3048R Sales and Marketing Alignment: How to Get ‑ and Stay ‑ on the Same Page
Feb. 10, 2026
3011R How to Grow Your Brand: Incorporating Brand Marketing into Your Exhibit Program
Feb. 19, 2026
4101R Boost Up: Promote Yourself from Service Provider to Strategic Business Partner
Mar. 3, 2026
6020R The @show Experience: Understand the Essentials of Exhibit Design
Mar. 10, 2026
7058R Authors Executive Series: Thrive Under Deadlines: Strategies for Success
All Sessions >>

EuroShop Awards
great flame follows a little spark, wrote Dante in "The Divine Comedy." While penned in the 1300s, this truism is alive and well today, as evidenced by the myriad exhibit- and retail-industry aficionados who trek to EuroShop, The Global Retail Trade Fair. Held once every three years in Dusseldorf, Germany, EuroShop draws more than 100,000 attendees in search of not only products and services, but their own little sparks of inspiration. While retailers anticipate that this creative go juice will eventually lead to a sales firestorm, exhibit designers hope the show's inspirational embers will ignite an inferno of inventive exhibit designs for years to come. 


























