Trade Show Finds

As someone who works in the corporate world, I sometimes find myself attending trade shows or conferences. I also occasionally accompany my husband to his conferences which are in a different industry. When I have a little spare time at any of these events, I try to walk through the booths looking for goodies; I believe the industry term for these items is swag. Even though both of us are in boring scientific fields, the swag at some of our industry events can be quite good.

In the past I have always searched for the useful items such as pens, sticky notes, and the occasional duffel bag as well as anything that my children might find fun such as a stuffed animal or soccer ball. Recently, in addition to these items, I have found some scrapbooking treasures mixed in with the industry items.

Here are some examples of things that I have found:

Alterable Items
Many companies give out items to decorate your desk and constantly remind you of their company. Some of these can be easily altered into a gift, toy, or more attractive item for your desk. A treasure that I recently found for altering is a little metal mailbox. I had actually been shopping for one to alter with my son and my local craft store was out of them. When I told the women giving them out what I needed it for, she told me to take two in case I made a mistake. Of course, I used the word “decorate” rather than “alter” when I was talking to her.

Storage Items
I have discovered many storage-related trade show finds, the best being M&M™ tins. Many companies give these out filled with M&M’s that have their company name or logo on each little candy. They are often in an open basket so you can help yourself to more than one. I give the M&M’s to my children and wash the tins out for re-use. Note that the tops are glass and can break, so if you ever find these, bring them home in your carry-on.

Another good option for scrapbook storage is mint containers. Many companies give out mints, which are similar in size to eyelets and brads, and may provide an interesting storage opportunity. If the container is a nice size, but you don’t like the corporate design, just alter it.

Scrapbooking Items
While I haven’t found a lot of items at a trade show that can go onto actual scrapbook pages, I have found some. My best find in this area was the green staplers filled with green staples.

Other items to be on the lookout for are ribbons, buttons, and clips. You may need to remove them from another item in which case you should take the whole item and remove the useful part later in your hotel room.

Whether you are attending your own industry event or as a spouse, take some time to do some “scrap-shopping” at the booths. If you keep your eyes and your mind open, you’ll be surprised at the treasures you will find.