Robe’s high impact London themed stand – complete with genuine vintage London
bus – was right at the core of the 2016 PLASA exhibition in London where it caught
the eyes of visitors and provided a lively and invigorating environment to showcase
the latest technology from the Czech lighting manufacturer.
The just launched Spiider LED wash beam luminaire was the visual centrepiece of
the stand, with 42 Spiiders arranged on a scenic “super-web’ web at the heart of a
spectacular lightshow that ran every hour.
Just launched globally on the internet via the trending ‘Spiiders all over the web’
video three days before the show, it was the hot product of the expo!
The super-web was neatly concealed behind drapes that transformed the stand into
a theatrical space to show off Robe’s other highlighted products which included the
new Halo pixel ring, the all-LED DL series and BMFL WashBeams from Robe’s
signature high-powered BMFL range.
Robe’s CEO Josef Valchar commented, “I was initially a little sceptical about how
PLASA would “pan-out’ this year, I even prepared our staff for the fact that this
could be the last PLASA … BUT … any doubts were turned on their head by the end
of the first day!
“We have seen a diverse mix of visitors from the UK and Europe, and most of our
key European distributors also attended and were busy with customers throughout.
The move back to west London has been hugely popular, and I think it’s really given
the expo the “bounce’ it needs to re-energize’.
Mick Hannaford, MD of Robe UK commented that the overall quality of the visitors
was “extremely good’ and “high value’ and echoed Josef’s remarks about the
advantages of the re-location to Olympia. “For this show and with the sociability of
the industry and the way business is done, west London is an ideal place.’
Assisting the Robe UK sales team on the stand were four technical theatre and
lighting students from the University of South Wales and Central School of Speech &
Drama. This is an ongoing Robe work scheme now in its sixth year, designed to
assist in broadening their industry experience, networking and communication
skills.
Upstairs on the mezzanine floor in the “Exploratorium’ – a curated experimental
space dedicated to art, technical and scientific projects utilizing sound and visual
technology, techniques, elements and concepts – were three interactive experiments
using Robe equipment. These were developed by student and artist Luke Rolls in
conjunction with Robe’s NRG (Next Robe Generation) initiative.
Josef concludes with great enthusiasm, “The stand rocked! We all enjoyed a great
buzz and many positive dynamics from the exhibition. It was good to have new
elements like the Exploratorium happening as well as the main show floor activities
… and we all look forward to being back in the same spot next year!’
