The latest issue of Exhibitor Magazine hit my mailbox last week, highlighted by their annual look at industry cost averages.
Now I’m not going to throw all of their numbers out for you. If you want ’em all, check out their website or buy the magazine. They usually release the current online version a few weeks after the paper version has been out.
But I do want to take a gander at a few of the numbers in general terms.
A few of the main figures that we always work with our clients and prospects here at Interpretive Exhibits are: industry average cost for custom booths, inline booths, and design and fabrication.
Several years back I compiled a short list from various sources, and the averages were something like this (figures from 2000 – 2002):
Average cost for new, custom construction:
Island: $130 per square foot
In-Line: $1,230 per linear footAverage cost for exhibit design (hourly): $80 – $85
Average cost for graphic design (hourly): $70 – $75
According to the figures just released in the November 2009 issue of Exhibitor Magazine, rates are up approximately 25% since the beginning of the decade, or less than 3% per year. According to data from InflationData.com, the yearly average from 2000 – 2008 is 2.89%.
The figures through September of 2009 shows mostly negative inflation, and those figures were not included – but obviously they would pull the 10-year average down.
Conclusion: Nothing really surprising here – actually I would view the figures as somewhat encouraging as some of the basic costs of designing and fabricating a custom booth are in line with inflation.
Without giving out the actual figures compiled by Exhibit Magazine – after all, they did the work and until they post them online I don’t think it’s fair to jump the shark with their specific numbers – it appears that the key figures we track in the exhibit industry have risen in line with other prices.
PS. When Exhibitor releases those numbers online, I’ll look to post a link do you can review all of the figures.
