PLASA Show

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PLASA Show
PLASA Show 2018.jpg
PLASA Show 2018
StatusActive
GenreEntertainments Industry Technical Equipment
Venue Olympia
Location(s) London
Country United Kingdom
Inaugurated1977
FounderBritish Association of Discotheque Manufacturers
Organized by PLASA
Website plasashow.com

The PLASA Show is an annual trade show hosted at Olympia and organised by the Professional Lighting and Sound Association. The show was formerly held at Earls Court Exhibition Centre and between 2013 and 2015 at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre. The show draws an international attendance of exhibitors and visitors in the lighting, audio and related technologies sector of the entertainments industry.

Trade fair exhibition organized so that companies can showcase or/and demonstrate their newest products

A trade fair is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products and services, meet with industry partners and customers, study activities of rivals, and examine recent market trends and opportunities. In contrast to consumer fairs, only some trade fairs are open to the public, while others can only be attended by company representatives and members of the press, therefore trade shows are classified as either "public" or "trade only". A few fairs are hybrids of the two; one example is the Frankfurt Book Fair, which is trade only for its first three days and open to the general public on its final two days. They are held on a continuing basis in virtually all markets and normally attract companies from around the globe. For example, in the U.S., there are currently over 10,000 trade shows held every year, and several online directories have been established to help organizers, attendees, and marketers identify appropriate events.

Olympia, London exhibition centre and conference centre in West Kensington, London

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Earls Court Exhibition Centre exhibition, conference and events venue in London, England

Earls Court Exhibition Centre was an internationally renowned exhibition and events venue in London, considered iconic by many visitors, that originally opened in 1887. A permanent structure in art moderne style was not built until 1935–37. Its heritage listing was refused after it was acquired by developers and demolition was completed, in 2017.

Contents

History

The show originally started in 1977 [1] at the Bloomsbury Crest, London, launching under the name of Discotek 77. In 1982, whilst still at the Bloomsbury Crest, it was renamed the BADEM Light & Sound Show to mirror the name of the fledgling trade association that had been set up for the sector - the British Association of Discotheque Equipment Manufacturers. [ citation needed ] BADEM was subsequently renamed the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) and thus in 1984, the show became the PLASA Light and Sound Show. In 1985, it relocated to the Novotel in Hammersmith, then to Olympia 2 in 1988, where it stayed until 1992 before transferring to the larger Earls Court 2.[ citation needed ]

Novotel International hotel chain

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Hammersmith district in west London, England

Hammersmith is a district of west London, England, located 4.3 miles (6.9 km) west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.

It made the move from Earls Court 2 to Earls Court 1 in 1996 and in 2007 opened the doors back to Earls Court 2 and occupied both halls.[ citation needed ] In 2013 the show moved to the ExCeL exhibition centre. [2] It stayed here for 3 years, announcing that the 2016 show would move back to West London and be hosted at Olympia. [3] During its time at ExCeL PLASA had been hosted during the month of October - prior to this the show was typically held during September. Upon its move to Olympia, the show moved back to September.

The show has remained at Olympia since 2016 and in 2017 celebrated its 40th anniversary “with an increase in visitor numbers, a sold-out show floor and a 25% increase in the number of audio companies exhibiting.” [4]

The 2018 show was a further success with a “4% increase in visitors with a palpable atmosphere that was reminiscent of its popular Earls Court days.” [5]

For much of its history, the show was run by an external events company, however in 2007, PLASA took the management of the event in-house and launched PLASA Events Ltd. which is still in operation. [6]

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<i>Lighting & Sound International</i>

Light & Sound International (LSi) is a UK monthly entertainment technology magazine published in Eastbourne by PLASA Media Ltd, a commercial arm of the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) and is distributed around the world in English. Light & Sound International covers the broad range of the entertainment, presentation and events industries worldwide, including theatre, live touring, clubs, themed venues, corporate events and presentations, as well as in-depth profiles of the people and companies who put it all together – and the issues affecting them.

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World Travel Market (WTM) is a UK event for the global travel industry, launched at London's Olympia in 1980 before moving to Earl's Court in 1992 and then to ExCeL London in 2002. Almost 46,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and representatives of the international media, converge on ExCeL London each year in November to attend WTM.

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Professional Lighting and Sound Association Trade organisation

The Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) is a trade association headquartered in Eastbourne, United Kingdom. Its membership is made up of companies involved with the events and entertainments technology sector.

SGM Light A/S is a Danish manufacturer of LED lighting and custom engineered solutions for the concert touring, entertainment, architectural, commercial and industrial sectors. The company is based in Aarhus, Denmark and owned by Peter Johansen, the founder of Martin Professional, who acquired it in 2012.

British Marine is the trade association for the UK leisure, superyacht and small commercial marine industry, currently representing 12 regional associations, 16 Group Associations and 1600+ members across the UK marine supply chain. These include the Superyacht sector, chandlers, boatbuilders, brokers, suppliers of equipment for yachts and motorboats, to flag makers, Sailing Training and operators of marinas both coastal and inland. British Marine also promotes career opportunities in the marine industry and advice and assistance through their Environment and Boating Facilities, and Training and Technical teams.

References

  1. ↑ "Business Event Attendance Certificate - PLASA 2012" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
  2. ↑ King, Jeremy (24 Aug 2012). "PLASA to swap Earls Court for Excel in 2013". Event Magazine. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
  3. ↑ "PLASA Show brings curtain down on ExCeL era and announces exciting future". PLASA Show. PLASA. 13 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  4. ↑ "PLASA Show celebrates successful return to West London". LSiOnline. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  5. ↑ "PLASA 2018 'busiest' in years". LSiOnline. 25 September 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  6. ↑ "PLASA Launches Events Strategy". UK Sound and Lighting Community. 6 September 2006. Archived from the original on 1 October 2006. Retrieved 4 January 2008.
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