Country Shows
Country shows, according to the Association of Show and Agricultural Organisations (ASAO) attract over 7 million visitors each year, (a staggering 10 percent of the population!) thereby providing incredible marketing opportunities for both business to business and consumer companies seeking to promote their products, brands and messages. These country shows create a rare opportunity to meet and greet customers in person.
They are so important to the UK economy that a Westminster Hall debate took place in July 2022 on the importance of Agricultural Country Shows and County Shows to rural Britain, the minutes of which are recorded in the House of Commons Library should you wish to read them.
My own introduction to country shows
My first time exhibiting at a country show (perhaps baptism would be appropriate) was not auspicious. Having recently joined an agricultural company I was rather excited to be instructed to see to the exhibition stand at the Royal Three Counties show in Malvern. Whilst a few days staying in a particularly nice hotel situated in the Malvern Hills, during a warm June, proved most welcome the exhibiting side was a bit of a disaster.
I have given “state of the art” Marler Hayley display panels (the old style that managed to puncture holes in the upholstery of my new company car) and off I went. Having been allocated a few square metres within a communal marquee I set up my stand and realised I was very much the poor relative (no disrespect to Marler Hayley intended). Considering this country show attracted and attendance of over 90,000, including many farming families, I saw very few and even fewer interested in our products and services.
Still being on probation, I managed to be as diplomatic as possible in expressing my views on our exhibiting arrangements to the marketing manager who, from his remote and comfortable office, could see nothing to worry about apart from it obviously being my fault in failing to attract customers!
Fast forward to the following year and my first show of that year was the Devon County Show, which remains one of my favourite shows to attend and, being in May, is in my mind very much the start of “the country show season”. Over 96,000 visitors generally attend this event so I hopefully had plenty of meeting and greeting to do.
However, things really had not changed during the intervening twelve months, although I did now have my own pop-up shelter to stand under. With a year under my belt, I was enviously looking at those exhibitors with exhibition trailers, not to mention the sleek exhibition vehicles. I would have happily settled for one of the small 4 metre trailers although others at 7 metres, featuring extension pods, banner boards and swing out display panels were more inviting. Some of these exhibition vehicles having their own fenced in areas kitted out with outdoor seating, umbrellas, literature displays and even product demonstrations all rendering my stand amateurish and uninviting.
Not long after that show I changed career plans and became more involved in all aspects of mobile exhibitions and roadshows helping clients either purchase or hire their own hospitality and exhibition trailers whilst advising on attending country shows.
Country Shows and County shows
In my mind there is little to differentiate a Country show from a County Show. Each features competitions, with prizes awarded by judges, allowing farmers and breeders to show off their cattle or crops. Each has demonstrations, plus trade stands which offer the latest farming machinery, fertilizers and other farming products plus shopping arcades with vendors selling everything from contemporary art to foodstuffs, clothing to housewares.
These shows add up to around 400 days of events (source ASAO) each year and are spread over the length and breadth of the UK and Northern Ireland during the spring and summer months making them ideal for small regionally active companies to attend whilst presenting a superb opportunity for national companies to launch, sample or test new brands and products. And its not just about exhibiting and meeting face to face. Attending these events provide opportunities for prospect list building, social media exposure whilst supporting promotional activities and PR campaigns to name but a few.
The larger country shows are generally called County Shows although the Great Yorkshire Show (located on the outskirts of Harrogate) and taking place each July is an exception with a visitor attendance of 140,000. Some have the Royal prefix such as The Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, another very big favourite of mine, where you can see commerce being negotiated on an industrial scale with over 194,000 visitors. This show taking place in June of each year. Last but by no means least I must mention the Royal Welsh Show which takes place in Builth Wells every July as it has 250,000 visitors, a truly epic show with stunning surrounding scenery. Worth a visit just for the wonderful location!
A large percentage of visitors are involved one way or another with the countryside and or farming, who can be the most difficult to reach out to via any other means than at their local showground. Hence agricultural suppliers find these shows essential for each year’s trading.
But financially it goes further than that as research commissioned by the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association (RNAA) and undertaken by the University of East Anglia found that the Royal Norfolk Show located on the outskirts of Norwich generated £20 million for Norfolk including £14.3 million for Norwich businesses, with spend in the showground of £2 million. An extra visitor staying overnight from outside of the County being estimated to be worth £519.23, while a day-trip show visitor could be worth £335.66 to the Norfolk economy.
Multiply this over dozens of country shows and you can see the value to the UK economy!
Specialist agricultural trade shows
In addition to the country shows there are others very much associated with and relating to the countryside and farming. So, a brief word about two of these.
Cereals Event is the UK’s largest annual arable farming show attracting around 20,000 visitors with 350 exhibitors featuring working demonstrations of agricultural equipment, stands and business advice covering the arable industry. This event takes place in June each year and each event is held somewhere different. This year (2025) it is in Leadenham, Lincolnshire but without being dismissive of this year’s show I must mention that in 2026 a certain Jeremy Clarkson is set to host the event at his Diddly Squat Farm! Travelling to that event could be a challenge!
LAMMA, the UK’s Premier Agricultural Machinery and Technology Show used to take place on a cold and windy Newark Showground each January but moved to the NEC. More comfortable I guess and for those with exhibition vehicles still accessible.
Exhibiting at Country Shows
I do not intend to go into the rules and regulations of attending county shows as these vary from one showground to another. What is important is that if you are a small business with a tiny budget there will be a place for you.
If you operate an exhibition trailer, an exhibition vehicle or lucky enough to have an expanding articulated hospitality trailer then there is room for these too. The showgrounds are laid out in logical areas so you can choose your best spot where visitors interested in your products will expect to see your product range.
I know that MVTech build quite a few catering trailers each year and if you are one of these street food vendors then there is nowhere better for volume sales than at a Country Showground.
Which leads me to digress with a short story of things that can go ever so slightly wrong. One year I was working a premier brand coffee brand to promote their new offering via a sampling trailer designed to mass produce large cups of their delicious new brew and all to be given away free of charge. The stand was so successful that sales of coffee fell off the proverbial cliff at all the catering concessions. A potentially ugly and mass confrontation reminiscent of a slap stick movie was thankfully avoided when show organisers intervened and it was agreed that we replace the large paper cups with very much smaller taster thimbles! So, a salutary lesson to be learnt if you intend to give away free food samples….check you are not about to damage someone else’s business!
Visiting a Country Show
For those familiar with those carefree pre-inflation and pre shrinkflation days it may seem that an entrance ticket to say the Royal Highland Show at £43 for an adult or the Great Yorkshire Show which charges £36 per adult is a bit on the steep side. But then think what do you get for this money. A full-length great day out in the fresh air, show jumping and other competitions, sheep dog trials, field craft demonstrations, plenty of animals to admire, shopping bargains and excellent food and drink direct from farms.
Compare this to attending (for example) the King Power Stadium in Leicester to watch a mere 90 minutes of Premier League football at an entrance cost of £64 for a decent seat and it’s very easy to see which gives the best return for your investment. Visiting a Country Show wins hands down in my view.
And that swings round to why it’s so sensible to be exhibiting at these outdoor events. You don’t come across crowds booing or singing questionable songs. All visitors are happy, enjoying themselves and very relaxed. What can be better for sales and conversion?
Multi Vehicle Technology Ltd
Having given me the opportunity to write my first ever blog I would like to conclude by thanking MVTech for this uncensored opportunity and to remind readers that if you are seeking advice and creative ideas for any type of bespoke specialist vehicle conversions for exhibitions, product sampling, product demonstrations or catering they can help you, so call them on 0116 326 0989 or you can write to sales@multivehicletechnology.co.uk
Author PETER BAILEY : Our guest Blogger Peter Bailey has a wealth of experience when it comes to using mobile exhibition vehicles and trailers to attend Country Shows. We hope to persuade him to write more for us in the future.
