🪓 Calling All Arborists – What Do You Want to See at an Arb Exhibition? 🌳

[Steve Bullman]

8 hours ago, Sviatoslav Tulin said:

You asked….. free beer and nice looking women’s , arb stuff irrelevant, IDK!

I’m sure all the lads will chip in for the beer, you can bring a bus load of Eastern European honeys 

[topchippyles]

4 hours ago, Steve Bullman said:

I’m sure all the lads will chip in for the beer, you can bring a bus load of Eastern European honeys 

Get your wallet out Steve 😂

[manco]

On 16/10/2025 at 09:05, James Bunn Pro Arb Live said:

We’re in the early stages of planning an arborist-focused exhibition, and we want to make it genuinely useful, relevant, and exciting for the arb community.

Whether you're a seasoned climber, consultant, plant health expert, or just starting out, we’d love to hear:

👉 What kind of demos, talks, or gear would get you through the door?
👉 Are there specific topics, speakers, or hands-on activities you’d like included?
👉 Do you prefer climbing comps, kit testing, technical workshops… or something totally different?

Now’s your chance to help shape something that works for us, not just about us.

Drop your ideas, wishlist items, or even pet peeves in the comments – let’s build something worth turning up for. 💪

#arbtalk #arboriculture #arbexhibition #treework #climbers #arblife #arborists

site it somewhere nice, so we can all have a nice break on business expenses

lots of shiny shiny gear

technical talks on common machines sounds good

 

[monkeybusiness]

A demonstration area where you can actually operate various machinery (be that chippers, cranes, excavators or even new chainsaws). 
Might need a breathalyser at the entrance though….

[Steven P]

beer tent pricing - saw a thing a while back that the prices are often high because the organiser wants a vendors fee plus a cut off all sales (20% of sales was mentioned)... adds a couple of ££ to each burger or beer... so don't be greedy (not just shows, but all captive market events). A couple of ££ entry fee but a reasonable priced beer might be better.

 

 

(of course, entry fee can go through the books, 10 pints you might struggle with)

Edited yesterday at 11:23 by Steven P

[Steve Bullman]

54 minutes ago, Steven P said:

beer tent pricing - saw a thing a while back that the prices are often high because the organiser wants a vendors fee plus a cut off all sales (20% of sales was mentioned)... adds a couple of ££ to each burger or beer... so don't be greedy (not just shows, but all captive market events). A couple of ££ entry fee but a reasonable priced beer might be better.

 

 

(of course, entry fee can go through the books, 10 pints you might struggle with)

So charge entry but entry ticket gets you 10 free pints at the bar, everyones happy!

[AHPP]

Would guarantee Mark goes in on an adult ticket. Possibly two.

[Steve Bullman]

On 16/10/2025 at 11:50, James Bunn Pro Arb Live said:

@Mark Bolam. A good bar i think is very essential and live demos are important to keep arborists up to date with new products and technology as well as educate them.

He's not cheap, but if you could persuade Mark Bolam to perform with his air guitar, it would draw guaranteed crowds.

[Jonesie]

You need to make the stands reasonably priced, and the beers and food need to be good and fairly priced too.

A strong focus on the social side is essential — an evening with a bar open until very late around a big fire would be perfect.

 

The social aspect is what people will look forward to, remember, and come back for — something no one else really does, apart from when I ran the FRJ show.

 

The focus needs to be on the visitors; if you get that right, the stands will fill up naturally.

But also remember, from an exhibitor’s point of view, before they even pay for the plot, they’ll already be facing costs of £2–5k or more for marquees, transport, staff, hotels, etc.

 

It’s going to be difficult, as you’ll need to cover costs while keeping things reasonably priced. Without the numbers, it just won’t happen.

 

Also, security is always an issue with theft, so that needs to be taken into account.

 

[Mick Dempsey]

Maybe some way of attracting more women (wives and girlfriends)