Virtually all the exhibitors at the 2014 Show have now confirmed that they will be attending again next May. And more than 20 new exhibitors – including vehicle manufacturers, leasing companies and fleet service providers – have already signed up for the event.
The last available stand space was snapped up at the end of last week by one of the major leasing companies, and the Show organisers are now looking at ways of making additional space available to accommodate demand from other companies that want to share in the fleet market extravaganza.
Event organiser Jerry Ramsdale said: ‘The Fleet Show success story rolls on! We have had unprecedented demand for next year’s Show, following the outstanding success of this year’s event which saw record numbers of high-quality visitors.
‘We have had numerous enquiries, and then confirmed bookings, from companies wanting to share in the Show’s success, virtually from the moment the Show finished in April.
‘Many of them came to this year’s show at Silverstone to see what the show was like, and booked straight after.
‘We are now urgently talking with Silverstone to look at ways in which we can expand the Show to take in more exhibitors and accommodate those on our already growing waiting list.’
The sell-out Show, where a great deal of emphasis is placed on the importance of face-to-face meetings – will include a huge array of features of interest for fleet decision-makers as it looks to build on the outstanding performance this year.
Plans for the 2015 event are well-advanced and include test driving on three circuits of the world-famous Silverstone Grand Prix venue, off-road driving on the 4×4 course, plus a local road route. A host of major new car launches, with a special emphasis on electric and hybrid powered vehicles, look set to be a major attraction for fleet decision-makers.
Organisers are expecting test drives to increase by 20% in May over and above this year’s Show, which itself featured a record number of drives.
In addition to the top-notch, high calibre driving experience the Show offers, halls 1-3 of the state-of-the-art Silverstone Wing will again accommodate a wide array of exhibitors demonstrating some of the latest developments, products and services in the fleet arena.
This will again provide Show visitors with the chance to hold face-to-face meetings and network with exhibitors and other visitors alike.
Organisers have also confirmed plans for another programme of fleet management workshops, which were run by actively serving fleet managers and which proved immensely popular at the 2014 Show.
The new-look workshop-style sessions tackled fleet policy, risk management, driver training and environmental management this year, each one presented by one or several highly experienced fleet managers who were able to share their knowledge with the audience.
This was a radical change from the conference-style seminar programme of previous years and was highly successful in stimulating discussion on key fleet management topics between the audience and the presenters.
As a new departure for 2015, next year’s Show will also feature a new programme of workshops aimed specifically at delegates from the contract hire and leasing industry, specifically tackling areas of interest to them.
This year’s Show attracted a record attendance which was up 40% on 2013, drawing a wide range of tributes from vehicle manufacturers, leasing companies and fleet service providers, many describing it as the ‘most successful Fleet Show ever’.
Jerry Ramsdale continued: ‘We have been delighted by the unprecedented demand for next year’s Show from exhibitors, and our objective now is to ensure that they and our visitors have another outstanding experience.
‘Many of last year’s audience of high quality fleet decision-makers realised that the Show offered the perfect balance of test driving, exhibition, workshops and networking to justify a full day out.
‘We believe that with next year’s sell-out Show, we need to surpass even that fantastic full-day experience. The best just got set to be better still,’ he said.
For more details of the Fleet World Fleet Show 2015, sponsored by Barclaycard in association with TMC, please visit http://www.thefleetshow.co.uk/ or phone 01727 739160.