Choosing a trade show
Before comparing suppliers, a buyer needs to know whether a show is likely to contain the right ones. That depends less on a show’s size than on its product categories, the kind of exhibitors it attracts, and how much the organiser actually publishes.
- Show name
- Not supplied
- Dates and venue
- Not supplied
- Product categories listed
- Not supplied
- Exhibitor list published
- Not supplied
- Source
- Organiser’s official information — cited with the date checked
Questions a buyer would ask
- aWhich product categories does the organiser list — and does yours have its own hall or section?
- bAre exhibitors described as suppliers of finished frames, components, materials or services?
- cIs an exhibitor list published before the show, and how complete is it?
- dWhat official information exists — a floor plan, a category index, visitor registration terms?
CHAN ISSUE does not rank shows without evidence. Where two shows appear to overlap, a report would set out what each organiser publishes and what remains unclear.
Does the organiser’s published exhibitor information let you identify suppliers in your category before you travel?
Recording a supplier conversation
A visit note is only useful if a reader can tell what was seen from what was said. The profile below shows the report format with no real supplier behind it — every answer is left empty on purpose.
A published report places an authorised booth photograph here. This sample does not include one.
How evidence is labelled
In this sample the labels are examples of the format, not verification results. Missing information reads “Not collected” — never zero, and never a tick.
- Business role
- Supplier — manufacturing role not evidenced
- Booth and hall
- Not collected
- Spoke with
- Not collected (role, not name)
- Business contact
- Shown only when provided and authorised
| TOPIC | QUESTION ASKED | ANSWER | LABEL WHEN RECORDED |
|---|---|---|---|
| Product range | Which frame types and materials do you currently supply? | Not collected | Observed or Supplier-stated |
| Customisation | What can be customised — colour, logo, shape, material — and on which models? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
| MOQ basis | Is the minimum order counted per style, per colour, or per order? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
| Price inclusions | What does a quoted price include — packaging, logo, testing, delivery terms? | Not collected | Supplier-stated; Document-reviewed if quoted in writing |
| Sample costs | Are samples charged, and is any charge credited against an order? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
| Development costs | Are there tooling or development charges for new designs, and who owns the tooling? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
| Lead-time trigger | What starts the lead-time clock — deposit, sample approval, or material arrival? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
| Reorder conditions | Do minimums, prices or lead times change on reorders? | Not collected | Supplier-stated |
In a report, each answer carries its label, the date it was recorded, and any condition the supplier attached to it.
Which of these answers will the supplier confirm in writing, and which were given only in conversation?
Clarifying manufacturing requirements
Samples are cheaper to change than production. Before requesting them, agree what the sample must demonstrate and what information the supplier will provide alongside it.
Resolve before sampling or ordering
- Specification
- Which drawing, reference sample or measurement sheet is the sample built to — and whose version is final?
- Materials
- Which frame and component materials will be used, and can the supplier name where they come from?
- Colour and finish
- How will colours and finishes be matched, and who approves them?
- Tolerances
- Which dimensional tolerances does the supplier work to, and how are they checked?
- Documents
- Which test reports or declarations does your market require, and which can the supplier actually provide?
- Sample vs bulk
- Will the sample be made with the same materials and process as the bulk order?
Ask for these answers in writing, and note the date you received them. Where a supplier refers to a test report or certificate, request a copy and record it as Document-reviewed — reading a document is not the same as confirming that it applies to your product.
Which documents will the supplier provide with the sample, and do they refer to the same materials as the bulk order?
LIMITS AND SOURCES
Sample observations do not prove factory status, production consistency or regulatory compliance. Business contact details appear in a report only when a supplier has provided them and authorised their use.
This illustrative sample draws on no external sources. In a report, official event information, supplier documents and catalogues are listed here with their provider and the date obtained.