Pop-up Trade Show Displays: American Made -vs- Imported

Given the expense that companies incur for exhibiting at a trade show, it is very important to choose the right supplier to purchase your next exhibit from.  There are a myriad of polished websites out there selling some products that may look like what our company sells at reduced prices....but there are huge differences!

The term "Buyer Beware" really does apply to some websites offering dirt cheap exhibit products.  For trade show displays, you actually do get what you pay for.  If the price looks too good to be true, then there probably is a reason for that.  For example, what kind of service after the sale can you expect from a company offering this type of pricing?  What kind of quality can you expect?   Warranty? What Warranty??  Will the thing even work as expected once you do receive it?

Specifically, we are referring to imports from Asia.  Outwardly, you may not be able to tell from the information

on a website that the product is from Asia, but the price is so drastically low that this is a pretty good indication.  The website may even claim that they manufacture these displays.  This is more than likely not true.  The displays are usually made in China using extremely low grade materials...from the aluminum...to the fabric...to the hubs...even the transport cases are made of cheap materials.  Nothing is built to last!

You may say "it's just a pop-up, how bad can it be?"  Believe me, it can get pretty bad!  I've seen unused fabric panels come apart, hubs break, frames pieces break off after the first shipment, and even cases fail during shipping.  In some cases, you cannot use the supplied lights in Las Vegas.  Financially, this means chasing after someone to get a refund or disputing the charge with your credit card company and possibly having to lose the money you spent.  At the show, you may have had to jerry-rig something to make it work or even rent another display because the one you purchased was unworkable.  Something else to consider is if something does break, how long will it take to get replacement parts from China if the website that sold it to you is "between shipments."

How can you tell if you are dealing with a reputable online exhibit company?  Some ways to tell is by how many other products they sell.  Is there a huge variety of products that goes beyond a discounted pop-up, such as exhibit furniture, flooring, graphics, banner stands, truss, table coverings, pipe & drape, counters & cabinets, lighting, light boxes and more?  (An established company will sell more than just a couple of deeply discounted items) Does the company offer more than one quality level of trade show displays?  Do they look like they have been in business for years or for months?  Do they have referrals or testimonials for you to see?  Do the sales people seem helpful and well trained?  Are they trying to SELL you or HELP you with your project?   Is there a warranty for the products you are buying? 

Our American Made Budget Pop-up Displays offer the following:

* Lifetime Frame Warranty.  Please be advised that our failure rate is very low, so it is

easy for us to offer this warranty.

* Frame is made of highest grade aluminum to withstand repeated use.  8mm drawn aluminum tubing -This means you will be able to use the display for years under normal conditions.

* Self-locking frame is engineered to stand on most floor surfaces and maintain alignment.
*  We use Quality Frontrunner & Prelude fabrics.  You can choose from 56 colors to meet your

design needs.  Also, this is actually what we say it is.  Some of those websites mentioned above

say they are using this fabric but actually do not.

* Flame Retardant Fabric.  (Frontrunner & Prelude)  Depending on the show, a Fire Marshal may force you to take down your display if the fabric is not flame retardant.

* Quality Lights.  UAL approved lights that will not let you down.  Approved for trade shows.  Some Chinese imported lights are actually illegal in Las Vegas.

* Rotomolded Heavy-Duty Cases.  Our cases are built to not only effectively carry your display components in a logical way, but are also built to withstand repeated shipping.  There is a big risk of imported cases breaking during the first shipment.

* Same Day Shipping for certain fabric colors & kits.  We sell more displays this way because we are able to meet very tight deadlines.  Other colors ship in a few days.

* Free Ground Shipping on Budget Fabric & Budget Mural kits.  (Air is additional)

* Quality Help throughout the entire sales process.  Our sales representatives do not work on commission and are trained in the products we sell.  We only hire upbeat, helpful people who are motivated to do the job right the first time.  Because of the sheer volume of orders we do, we have seen every pitfall

to avoid and handle your project like you are our only customer!