✓Exhibition stand rental (or hire) means exhibiting on a stand the builder designs, builds, installs, dismantles and stores for you.
✓A custom rental stand costs €600 to €1,500 per m² for its first edition; re-using the same structure at the next show costs roughly one-third to one-half of that.
✓Renting wins at one to three shows a year, for a first show or a show abroad; buying pulls ahead from four shows a year with a stable footprint.
✓Book 8 to 12 weeks ahead, 3 to 4 months for major international shows.
Exhibition stand rental (or exhibition stand hire, as it is called in the UK) means exhibiting on a stand you do not own. The builder designs it, builds it, installs it, dismantles it and keeps the structure between shows. You pay for the use of the stand and the services around it, not for the asset. At Decore Studio Events, a rented stand is not a generic kit: it is a structure designed by us and produced by selected partner workshops, which we supervise piece by piece, dressed in your brand, then stored by us until your next show. This guide covers when rental beats purchase, what a package includes, price ranges per m² and per show, and how far ahead to book.
Rental or purchase: when renting an exhibition stand wins
The answer depends on three things: how many shows you do a year, whether the same layout works at each of them, and whether you want to carry an asset on your books.
Renting wins when you exhibit at one to three shows a year, when you are testing a new market or a new show, when the floor space changes from one event to the next, or when you exhibit abroad and do not want to ship a stand you own across borders. It also wins when your brand evolves often: graphics are reprinted at each edition, so the stand never looks dated.
Buying wins when you exhibit four times a year or more with a stable footprint, when your identity is fixed for several years, and when you have somewhere to store the stand, or a builder who stores it for you. The initial cost is then spread over five to ten shows and the price per show drops sharply.
| Your situation | Rent | Buy |
|---|---|---|
| One to three shows a year | Yes | Rarely worth it |
| Four shows a year or more, same footprint | Possible | Yes |
| Floor space changes from one show to the next | Yes | Only with a modular design |
| First show, or a new market to test | Yes | No |
| Shows abroad (London, Dubai, Las Vegas) | Yes | Hybrid: owned core, rented modules |
| Brand identity fixed for three years or more | Possible | Yes |
| No storage and no logistics team | Yes | Only if the builder stores it |
Many exhibitors end up with a hybrid: a bought core (reception counter, meeting room, signature wall) and rented modules to adjust the size at each show. Our double-decker stands are often handled this way, with an owned ground floor and a rented upper level for the largest shows.
What an exhibition stand rental package includes
Serious rental offers are turnkey: one contract, one contact and one price covering the stand from brief to dismantling. The detail is what separates providers. Here is what a rental package should include, and what ours includes.
- Design: brief, plans, elevations and a material board, approved by you before anything is produced.
- Structure: a reusable framework (aluminium framing, timber partitions, raised floor) adapted to your floor space and to your position in the hall, corner, inline or island.
- Cladding and graphics: printed panels, stretched fabric, backlit light boxes, signage and hanging sign, produced by our partner workshops and reprinted at each edition.
- Furniture and lighting: counters, lockable storage, seating, LED lighting, screens where needed.
- Logistics: transport from the partner workshop to the venue, in France or abroad, with customs paperwork when the show is outside the EU.
- Installation and dismantling: our fitters build the stand, hand it over before the opening and take it down after closing. Nothing to manage on site.
- Storage and refurbishment: the structure returns to our warehouse, is checked, repaired where needed and waits for your next show.
What is usually not included: the floor space itself, paid to the organiser, the electrical connection fees and the show's mandatory services (waste, cleaning, badges, insurance). A good quote lists them separately so you can compare offers line by line. Our turnkey exhibition stand service describes the full scope, for rented and purchased stands alike.
Exhibition stand rental prices per m² and per package
Rental prices are expressed per square metre and per show. The range is wide because a rented stand can be a simple modular structure with printed graphics or a fully bespoke architecture with double-height walls and an enclosed meeting room. The figures below are the ones we apply on our own projects. They include design, build, graphics, furniture, lighting, installation and dismantling, but not the floor space.
| Stand range | Price per m², per show | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Modular rental structure | Below the custom range, on quotation | Reusable aluminium framing, printed or fabric cladding, standard furniture and lighting, quick to install |
| Custom rental stand | €600 – €1,500 | Structure produced by our supervised partner workshops, brand-specific finishes, bespoke counters, LED lighting, storage between shows |
| Double-decker rental stand | €1,000 – €2,000 per m² of built area | Two levels, staircase, upstairs meeting space, structural engineering and safety certificate |
Per package, this gives the following orders of magnitude for a custom rental stand. The right-hand column is what you pay when the same structure comes out of storage for a second edition: refurbishment, new graphics, transport, installation and dismantling.
| Floor space | First edition (design and build) | Next edition (same structure re-used) |
|---|---|---|
| 18 m² corner stand | €10,800 – €27,000 | €4,000 – €13,000 |
| 36 m² inline or corner | €21,600 – €54,000 | €8,000 – €27,000 |
| 54 m² island | €32,400 – €81,000 | €12,000 – €40,000 |
| 100 m² island | €60,000 – €150,000 | €20,000 – €75,000 |
Second and later editions are cheaper because the structure already exists. That is where the benchmark you will read everywhere comes from: re-using a rented stand costs roughly one-third to one-half of the first edition. Three factors move the price within the range: the share of bespoke joinery versus framing, the amount of lighting and audiovisual equipment, and the destination. A stand installed in Las Vegas or Dubai carries higher freight and local labour costs than the same stand installed in Paris. For a line-by-line breakdown of what drives the budget, read our guide to exhibition stand cost.
Rental vs purchase: the numbers
Take a 36 m² custom stand at €900 per m², a mid-range finish: €32,400 for the first edition, whether you rent it or buy it. The difference appears from the second show onwards. An owned stand costs a refit at each show (new graphics, transport, installation and dismantling, around €9,000 for this size) plus storage, about €2,500 a year. A rented stand costs a next-edition fee of around €13,000, storage included.
| Scenario | Buy | Rent |
|---|---|---|
| One show, year 1 | €32,400 + storage ≈ €35,000 | €32,400 |
| Three shows over two years | ≈ €55,000 | ≈ €58,000 |
| Eight shows over three years | ≈ €103,000 | ≈ €123,000 |
How to read it: at one to three shows, rental costs about the same as ownership, and you carry no asset, no storage contract and no risk of owning a structure that no longer fits your next floor space. From four shows a year, ownership pulls ahead, provided the stand still fits the spaces you book. Purchase is also the right call when you want the same architecture to become your signature across several years of shows.
Two things the table does not show. First, rental keeps your cash for the show itself: staff, invitations, hospitality. Second, an owned stand ages: after three or four editions, panels and counters need replacing, and the refit cost rises. Rental passes that risk to the builder.
Which stand formats can be rented or hired
Not all rental stands are the same. Four formats cover most needs, and only the first is what people usually picture when they hear "rented stand".
Modular rental structure
Standardised aluminium framing, assembled to the size of your space and dressed with printed or fabric graphics. It is the fastest to install and the cheapest to rent, and it suits shell-scheme spaces and small corner stands. Its limit is the visible frame rhythm, which makes it recognisable from one exhibitor to the next unless it is clad. Our modular trade show booth service uses framing as a skeleton only, hidden behind bespoke cladding.
Custom rental stand
A structure designed for you, produced by selected partner workshops that we supervise piece by piece, and kept in our storage between shows. Bespoke counters, joinery, backlit walls and lighting: nothing distinguishes it from a purchased stand on the day, except that you do not own it. This is the format we rent most often, in the €600 to €1,500 per m² range.
Double-decker rental stand
Two levels on the same footprint: reception and demonstration downstairs, meeting rooms or a lounge upstairs. The upper level is engineered and certified, which is why it costs more per m² of built area. It is a strong candidate for rental because few exhibitors need it at every show.
Event booth and pop-up
For a product launch in a shopping mall, a roadshow or a brand activation, a lighter structure is rented for a few days and re-used across cities. See our event booth service.
Modular rental systems: beMatrix, Octanorm, Maxima
Three aluminium frame systems dominate the European rental market. Knowing them helps you read a quote, because the system chosen drives the look, the height you can reach and the freight volume.
| System | Principle | Best for | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| beMatrix | Aluminium frames with a regular hole pattern, filled with panels or stretched fabric, LED backlighting from inside the frame | Backlit walls, curves, fast reconfiguration | Frame rhythm visible unless clad; fabric graphics only look premium when printed well |
| Octanorm | Octagonal posts and beams, the historic shell-scheme system | Shell schemes, budget partitions, storage rooms | Instantly recognisable look, limited height and load |
| Maxima | Heavier aluminium profiles for tall and load-bearing structures | Large stands, hanging structures, double-deckers | Needs engineering sign-off, more freight volume |
Our position is simple: frame systems are a skeleton, never a finish. Wherever a frame is used, it is hidden behind timber panels, painted MDF, stretched fabric or backlit boxes made by our partner workshops. That is the difference between a rented stand everyone recognises and a rented stand that looks built for you, which it is.
Renting for a multi-show programme
Rental makes the most sense when it is planned as a programme rather than show by show. If you exhibit three to five times a year on different floor spaces, we design one architecture in modules, for example an 18 m², a 36 m² and a 54 m² configuration, so it fits a corner in one hall and an island in the next while keeping the same identity.
The programme works like this: one framework agreement for the year, a price per edition set in advance, graphics reprinted for each show, and the structure stored and refurbished by us between events. You get one point of contact, one budget line and a consistent image from Paris to London, Dubai or Las Vegas, where our teams install the stand themselves or with local partners we have worked with for years.
For shows outside the EU, plan for customs: an ATA carnet for the structure, and either shipping of the printed graphics or local printing to save freight. We handle both, and we tell you upfront which one is cheaper for your destination.
How rental works with Decore Studio Events: six steps
The process is the same as for a purchased stand, with one extra step at the end: the stand comes back to us.
- Brief: your show, floor space and position in the hall, objectives, number of staff, products to show, meeting needs, budget bracket. We check the organiser's technical regulations (height limits, hanging signs, fire rating).
- Concept: plans, elevations and a material board. One or two revision rounds until you sign off.
- Itemised quote: structure, graphics, furniture, lighting, logistics, installation and dismantling, storage. Every line is visible so nothing appears after the show.
- Supervised production: joinery, painting and graphics printing are entrusted to selected partner workshops, which we supervise piece by piece, with a pre-assembly to check every panel before it leaves.
- Installation and handover: our fitters build the stand on site and hand it over, cleaned and lit, before the opening. A contact stays reachable during the show.
- Dismantling, return and storage: the stand is taken down after closing, transported back, inspected and stored for your next edition.
How far ahead to book
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| D-90 to D-75 | Brief, floor plan and organiser regulations received, first concept |
| D-75 to D-60 | Design revisions, itemised quote, sign-off |
| D-60 to D-30 | Production at partner workshops under our supervision, graphics, furniture ordered, transport booked |
| D-30 to D-10 | Pre-assembly check, packing, customs paperwork for shows outside the EU |
| D-3 to D-0 | Installation, cleaning, handover before the opening |
| After closing | Dismantling, return transport, inspection and storage |
Eight to twelve weeks is comfortable for a custom rental stand in France. For major international shows, count three to four months: venue slots, freight and local labour book up early. A structure already in our storage can be redeployed faster, since only the graphics and logistics need to be produced.
Stands we have built: three real projects
Rental structures leave our partner workshops with the same finish as purchased stands. Three projects show that standard, at three very different shows.
GiGi Studios, international optics trade show
The challenge: give presence to fine, colourful eyewear frames in a hall packed with showcases. The solution: a black metal mesh cage set like a sculpture, crossed by light, with suspended displays and a central demonstration bar. The result: a gallery-like stand that put the collections front and centre next to the industry's big groups.
Majorica, international jewellery fair
The challenge: translate the pearl into architecture and give visibility to small pieces in a vast hall. The solution: stacked discs forming a backlit red facade, inset with circular showcases. The result: an architectural signature recognisable from the far end of the aisle.
ECS Group and Global GSA, Air Cargo Europe, Munich
The challenge: two distinct spaces for two brands from the same group, within the tight schedule of an international show. The solution: design and production handled end to end, from space planning to on-site installation in Munich. The result: stands delivered ready to exhibit for the four days of the show. More projects on our achievements page.
Decore Studio Events has designed and built exhibition stands for over 25 years, under the direction of Giselle Calderon: we design, manage production with selected partner workshops that we supervise piece by piece, and install with teams that travel across Europe, the Middle East and the United States. Tell us your show, your floor space and your objectives, and we will come back with a concept and an itemised rental quote. Contact us.
