If you are a marketing person in charge of your exhibit at a major tradeshow, perhaps the worst thing that can happen is for the booth not to arrive. What are the chance s of that happening to both GE and OSRAM at the LUX Live show in London? When we visited both booths early Wednesday morning, there were no luminaires (or fittings as they say in the U.K.), no lamps and not one driver in either booth. I checked back late Tuesday. Same thing. Lots of people, just no equipment.
Turns out, this was their plan. We spoke to Kinga Kalocsai, GE’s PR & Communications Director for Europe, Middle East, Africa. Kinga explained that lighting is changing so fast, they are less product focused and more segment focused. She explained, “For the moment, forget lumens and lux, let’s talk about the impact that lighting has on different segments, such as retail, hospitality and municipalities.“ She went on to say, “It’s no longer about the LED transformation but about where the technology is taking us. Today, we are discussing Smart Cities, Connectivity and the Internet of Things.”
GE’s backdrop in their studio is Illuminated Minds (www.illuminatedminds.eu) and they have posted interviews and discussions at this new site. Illuminated Minds is designed as an open forum to discuss trends and the direction of the industry.
A spokesperson at OSRAM explained that at LUX live, one objective was to get close the customer. The area is designed for conversation and not products. We were told that OSRAM will continue to launch and show products at Light & Building and LIGHTFAIR and they have many tools for keeping their customers updated with product introductions, but this show is designed to cultivate relationships with customers.