An Interview With The Founders

Exhibit 3Sixty’s co-directors, Alan Craner and Andy Pearce are event industry veterans with decades of experience, and 13 years ago they founded Exhibit 3Sixty in their hometown of Coventry, determined to bring their own brand of customer service to the exhibition industry..

Why did you start your own exhibition building company?

Andy: Working for a national, and then multinational, events company, I was frustrated at the increasing lack of quality, care, attention and customer service as volumes went up. It’s not a foregone conclusion that this has to happen, you can have all of those – at volume – for a good price.

Alan Exactly, so we started Exhibit 3Sixty with this in mind. We saw that with more care and attention, we could easily win back time that was lost to silly mistakes, poor communication and bad planning, and use it to design and create better exhibitions. 

What makes Exhibit 3Sixty different?

Alan: Two things principally, customer service and quality. I know everyone says “customer service” when they get asked this, but we’re clear that we mean a total dedication to customer satisfaction, and that is a complex proposition, different for every client.

Andy: The core of our customer service is transparency and openness. We are always realistic, and never over-commit or over-promise. We plan meticulously to ensure we always deliver exactly what the client needs when they need it. Quality comes from craftsmanship and design, and we’re fortunate to have such a talented and hard-working team.

Alan: As we get to know our clients better over time, by consistently delivering excellent results, they come to trust us more and more. Looking after their brand is an important responsibility, and one we take very seriously. 

What is the best thing about working at Exhibit 3Sixty?

Andy: That’s a bit of a tricky question for ‘the boss’ but I think it is probably that we’re a really flat company with no room for hierarchy, and there’s a genuine camaraderie and shared sense of success when we get a  commendation from a client.

Alan: We also have a profit share scheme for all employees, to give everyone a real stake in the success of the business – and an informal and flexible approach to everyone’s work/life balance. As with our clients, everything we do as a team is rooted in mutual trust and respect.

What does a typical Exhibit 3Sixty customer journey look like?

Alan: Starting with a new enquiry, we’d obtain a brief outlining the basics, like show date, stand size, extras, budget and so on, and we’d give this to our designers, together with a clear understanding of what the client wants to achieve at the show, and they develop a preliminary concept which we send to the client with a quotation. 

Andy: We take a careful look at the budget, so our concepts are always realistic, achievable within given timeframes and plausible. We also strive to ensure that our visualisations match the finished stands, something our existing clients really appreciate. After the client has seen the first concepts and agreed to go forward, we will usually take the design through a few iterations until the client is in love with it, and our team is happy that it’s compliant with regulations and meets the show and venue requirements.

Alan: Then we get to work manufacturing it, and start designing the graphic and artworks in detail, finalising the furnishings, colours, fixtures and fittings, and generally bringing the project forward. When the time comes, we take the pre-built components on-site, carefully put the whole thing together, apply any final graphics and await the client for a final inspection.

Andy: That’s the moment they realise that the design they saw on the computer screen four months ago is now a reality in front of them. Big smiles all round!

What are some of the most interesting or unusual projects you have worked on?

Alan: I remember we refitted out the entire Lego section at Harrods, that was a lot of fun.

Andy: And a few months ago, we were working on a mini-exhibition at Wembley for the main sponsors of the delayed UEFA EURO 2020 Final – I definitely felt the anticipation there on the day before the big match, but alas it was not to be for the England team – even if it felt like a big win for us!