Oxford Business Expo 2022

Last week, we were delighted to exhibit at the Oxford Business Expo, Kassam Stadium, Oxford. This was our first experience of exhibiting, and it really did exceed our expectations.

We are a team who seize opportunities and we couldn’t let this one pass us by. With ten days to turn the planning and execution of the stand around, adrenaline was racing on the run up to the day!

Highlights of the event

Taking four of the team; Katie, Cameron, Abbey and Joel meant that we had plenty of opportunities to get involved with what was going on throughout the day. The expo had been expertly organised and we were lucky to be able to present Complete Graphics Surface Design to over 200 local businesses. Whilst the exhibitors were busy doing their thing, the insightful Key Note speakers presented on important topics such as ‘Reclaiming Brilliance in Leadership,’ Jenny Gordan.

One of our favourite parts of the event was the ‘Speed Networking.’ What a fabulous concept! This was an invaluable activity for us as we were able to meet and find out about multiple local businesses in a short space of time. We found it to be very impactful and although he was exhausted at the end, Joel had a great time both making new connections and catching up with old ones. If you are brave enough (!), we would absolutely recommend that should the opportunity arise, you partake in speed networking!

The benefits of exhibiting

One of our main product offerings; textured interior wrapping is unfamiliar to most people. It was wonderful to be able to offer live in - person demonstrations of how we use interior film here at Complete Graphics to give your interior space a re-vamp in a sustainable way.

Attending the exhibition was also a great opportunity to learn about other businesses in the local area and find out more about the people behind the brands.

Our key takeaways from the event

If you are thinking about attending an expo in the near future, our advice would be – ‘Go for it!’ Our key learnings following our first expo are:

1. The value of networking
   • Networking, although it might seem daunting is key to being part of a business community. We challenge you to search for a local networking event and attend, regularly if you can.
2. Make the most of the knowledgeable Key Note speakers
   • Attending the session ‘Get Ready to Supercharge your LinkedIn Growth’ with Claire Woods reminded us how important it is to interact with other people’s LinkedIn posts.
3. Preparation is key
   • When we attend our next expo, we hope for a little more planning time. Although we managed to organise this event in ten days, we would advise, where possible, to allow adequate planning and preparation time, so that you can avoid unnecessary stress!

Finally, a huge shout out to the whole team at Complete Graphics design who rise to each challenge that is thrown their way! The execution of this exhibition really wouldn’t have been possible without the whole team giving it their all. Katie Piper, Operations Manager, Complete Graphics

Don’t forget to sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with all things sustainable refurbishment.