What does a career as a trade show booth set up merchandiser look like?

I'm thinking about careers that involve travel and hands-on work, and I came across trade show booth setup. Can someone explain what this job entails and what skills might be useful?

A career as a trade show booth setup merchandiser, often referred to as a trade show display coordinator or exhibit builder, involves a range of duties that span both creative and logistical domains. They're responsible for constructing, breaking down, and storing exhibition booths at trade shows, conferences, or expos.

Your day-to-day tasks would include several elements. First, you'd need to review the floor plans for the event, vendors' specific needs and the event scheduling to ensure that the booth and it's displays are set up properly, on time and within budget.

Trade shows can vary greatly in theme and audience, so you'll be working with a vast array of products and branding materials. You'll need to adapt your booth set-ups to best display different types of products, while also creating an inviting and engaging environment for booth visitors. After the show, you'd then be responsible for breaking down the booth, storing and shipping materials, and sometimes making arrangements for any sold merchandise.

A trade show booth setup merchandiser typically does quite a bit of traveling, often to different cities or even countries, depending on the scale of the trade shows your company participates in. You would likely work irregular hours, as setup and breakdown often occur outside standard business hours, and on weekends for weekend events.

As far as skills are concerned, physical fitness is essential because the job involves lifting heavy objects, lots of movement, and potentially long work hours on your feet. Since you’d also be assembling and disassembling structures, a knack for mechanics and a good sense of spatial awareness would be beneficial. Strong organizational and time-management skills would also be key to juggle multiple tasks within tight event deadlines.

Customer service and communication skills are also important. You'll often interact directly with vendors and event organizers, and sometimes, you might be asked to assist with booth operations during the event. You need to listen to their requests and concerns, successfully communicate plans, and maintain a professional, friendly demeanor.

From a more technical standpoint, some knowledge of lighting, audiovisual technology, and carpentry could definitely be assets in this position, as these factors can play significant parts in creating an effective display.

Overall, becoming a trade show booth setup merchandiser could be a fulfilling career, especially if you enjoy hands-on work, have an eye for aesthetics, and love travel. Remember, though, that it can be physically demanding and require irregular hours, so it’s best suited to those who enjoy dynamic and shifting work environments.