Guest Posts
Guest Author: Richard Askam, Founder of Print Island
Every industry needs storytellers, and few tell the story of personalization better than Richard Askam. The visionary behind Print Island and a driving force behind campaigns like “Share a Coke,” Richard has helped shape how brands connect with people in more personal, meaningful ways.
As one of Mediaclip’s personalization ambassador, follow Richard on our blog as he will share his insights, ideas, and inspiration to help bridge creativity, technology, and personalization.
Ahh, spring. It comes around every year, yet somehow it always feels new. As the grip of winter finally loosens and the first green shoots of optimism appear, there’s a shared sense of renewal. We made it through and we’re ready to take on the year ahead.
In the print industry, that means one thing: tradeshow season.
Yes, I know they technically kicked off back in January at the Impressions Expo in California. But let’s be honest, the sun always shines on the West Coast so it hardly counts as winter.
A Changing Tradeshow Landscape
My calendar shows 16 major tradeshows I could, or should, attend in 2026. That’s down from 2025, and significantly lower than the pre-COVID era (remember that?).
Back in 2019, the industry’s “baseline year”, the numbers told a very different story:
- Around 150 print industry tradeshows globally
- Hosted across 89 cities in 48 countries
The countries leading the charge were:
- China: ~25 shows
- India: ~15 shows
- Germany: ~11 shows
Some of the standout events included:
- PRINTING United Expo 2019 — 680+ exhibitors and hundreds of sessions
- Print China 2019 — 1,200 exhibitors and 200,000 visitors
- Labelexpo Europe 2019 — one of the industry’s flagship events
- ISA International Sign Expo 2019 — a key event for wide-format printing
- PACK PRINT International 2019 — over 19,000 visitors
And of course, there’s Drupa, the world’s largest printing exhibition, held every four years (with the next edition expected in 2028). To put its scale into perspective, Drupa typically attracts over 1,800 exhibitors and 250,000 visitors across more than 50 halls.
2019 wasn’t just a busy year, it was the benchmark. A moment when the global exhibition industry was operating at full capacity before COVID disrupted everything in 2020 and 2021.
From Global Giants to Focused Impact
Here’s what’s changed.
Since the pandemic, the industry hasn’t simply shrunk, it’s evolved.
We’re seeing a shift away from massive, all-encompassing events toward fewer, more focused gatherings. At the same time, Asia’s influence has grown significantly, with major product launches increasingly happening at shows in China and across the region. These events now attract strong international attendance, reflecting where manufacturing and supply chains are most active.
In 2026, the calendar feels more concentrated. The anchor events remain FESPA Global Print Expo, PRINTING United Expo, PACK EXPO International, and Labelexpo Europe. However, the real momentum is coming from smaller, specialist shows.
These niche events focus on high-growth segments like:
- E-commerce
- Print-on-demand
- Short-run digital labels
- Sustainable materials
And importantly, personalization has stepped into the spotlight. Once a side conversation at major exhibitions, it now has a dedicated stage and rightly so.
A More Intentional Way to Show Up
My approach to travel has changed as a result.
In 2026, I’m spending less time moving between large-scale shows that differ only by climate and time zone, and more time going deeper into the sectors that were once considered niche, but are now firmly driving industry growth.
Less, But Better
So this spring, the mindset is simple:
Less is more.
Small is powerful.
And those green shoots? They’re no longer tentative, they’re defining the future of the industry.
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