Eisenwarenmesse International Hardware Fair : A Global Meeting Point for Hardware innovation. This event did not disappoint

Around 2,500 exhibitors from all 53 nations were brought together to present their latest products and innovations from tools and accessories to building and DIY supplies.  The halls were crammed with some amazing stand displays, music, refreshments even one with a DJ. 

The show reported around 33,000 visitors from over 125 countries.  The tense situation in the middle east also played its part with some short-term restrictions on international travel.  We heard of one exhibitor took over 80 hours to get to the show from America! 

This year the event took place on Tuesday to Friday instead of Sunday to Wednesday.  For us at Daley Hub, this was a welcome change as having to fly on a Saturday to be ready for Sunday and spending your whole weekend working is not welcome for work life balance. 

Why do we attend?

We walk the halls as a buyer searching for brands we have not heard of, and products that at first glance make us think, “How on earth can a company build an entire stand around just this one item?” 🤣 and when you stop, look closer, and start a conversation we usually find something else entirely: a different story, an unusual strategy, a niche, a market insight.  Huge passion for the brand and the product which gets us excited!

Photo - The Daley Hub Team

Clive Daley Nils Kernchen, Karl Thomas, Kerry Daley

Trade fairs are not just about the things you expect to discover.  They’re about the things you didn’t even know you were looking for. 😳

We don’t just look for products. We look for perspective, passion, different conversations, different thinking. We see their product and offering through the eyes of the retailer and challenge them on their thinking.

We bumped in the legend which is John Herbert “In all the years in the industry which has been 70 years, I have always valued trade fairs as an opportunity to see innovation.  I feel it’s a real treat for the buyers to come here.  I don’t think some really realise how important these trade fairs are”

Photo 📸 CLive Daley, John Herbert, Kerry Daley

First impressions from the show floor – things which were great !

Atmosphere was buzzing, stand designs some of which were incredible.  The diversity or product on display brilliant.  Lots of colour, music, happy people.   

Trade Shows are all about relationships and having conversations.  Exhibitors were friendly and welcoming to their stands.  Some provided food and drinks which was a welcome gift to sit and chill for a bit and listen to the hubbub of the world around.

There was lots of excitement around the WTF/Quickloader stand, and the afternoon refreshment get togethers each day were a great addition this year to talk to prospective new retailers and old friends. We are supporting their growth and are delighted to see Quickloader move into the first 50 Halfords stores in March this year. The Quickloader range delivers unique features for ease of use and a robustness that is unequalled. On the stand there were quality conversations on this busy stand all to a back drop of the song produced to support the UK launch on the WTF sealant brand. To our knowledge this is the only brand to create a song and video to support a country launch…be fun and different we say.  Fun and having fun whilst delivering business…we love this brand.

Photo 📸 Clive Daley, Karl Thomas, Mikko IKonen, Kerry Daley, Milla Ikonen

It was great to spend some more time with the EA (European Aerosols) team since we visited their production facilities in Amsterdam recently, this long-standing business has such understanding of the automotive and industrial sectors and it is time for growth in the UK. You would need 5 different suppliers to cover their range and this draw certainly made for a busy stand this show. We are delighted to be working with them….watch this space.

Photo 📸 Clive Daley, Norbert Neileck (CCO) Kerry Daley, Otto Vallinga Strategic Business Development Lead

What could have been better…it would have been nice to see more….

A lot of the exhibitors relayed that they felt there were less people this year.  We know there were as figures from 2024 was 38,000 with 33,000 this time although 5k people isn’t a big drop in numbers and strange that exhibitors felt it was quiet. 

Lots said conversations were “quality over quantity”.  A lot of stands, as we mentioned had food and drink and had clearly invited colleagues and friends to join them on the stand.  This is great for present business but beware as it can be detrimental to new business as customers will not interfere or will just walk by if your busy.  Some stands were humming with people so it can be quite off putting for someone to try and penetrate that crowd.  So having extra people on your stand to make sure “everyone” is looked after and new business is not deterred is of paramount importance. 

Marketing on the stands are still very end customer focused.  It’s all about product and features of product and not about what is right for the retailer, distributer or agent.  We often have to tease this information out of the people on the stand and a lot of the time they have to ask their colleagues for help.  It’s important at a trade show to “talk to your customer” not the end user.  Of course, the end user is important but it is not the information which will get you on the shelf at the retailer.

The show was said to be focused on sustainability and recycling solutions.  We feel this was not shouted about enough.  Exhibitors did not talk about it, or appear to advertise it well.  Sustainability did not “smack us in the face as we walked round”.  The show and exhibitors still handed out paper catalogues/show maps/business cards and we still had lanyards and paper tickets rounds our necks.  This could all quite easily go digital as the app worked really well. 

The food was pretty good, not very many vegan or vegetarian options though specially where coffee was concerned, we did not find any oat or soya milk it was non-existent.  So again thinking from a global sustainability focus, the meat and dairy industry is hugely bad for the planet and there were hardly any alternatives on offer for the 33,000 people attending.  That’s a lot of meat and dairy! There was however, no plastic bottles all drinks were in glass bottles however, we are told this is a Country Wide initiative rather than a Eisenware initiative.

Conversations with industry partners

We caught up with so many friends, colleagues and made some new business connections.

Photos 📸 Mark Lane MD Keter - Ben Warcup MD Rug Doctor

Reinhard Wolf -Wolfcraft

Oliver Ginestier Director of Communications EDRA-GHIN, Rainer Strnad Managing Editor DIY International, Claudia Maurer Director Spoga-Gafa, James Walker Category Managere Screwfix, Michel Salaun DIrector Corporate Development ADEO, Matt Sheen CEO Draper Tools Ltd

Innovations that stood out to us were…

Batavia’s movable telescopic scaffold (expertly showcased by our very own Kerry Daley) really easy to manoeuvre and erect.  Will fit perfectly in any size of vehicle and is a super sturdy structure for any DIY or professional project.  We also absolutely love their Maxxlick storage system which actually works seamlessly with multiple battery platforms.https://bataviastore.com/pages/maxxclick-collection

 Alberts due and Trio Connectors was an amazing innovation and had been nominated for the EisenAward 2026.  It’s not just a piece of metal with holes in it but the material is flexible and can be bent into any angle required.  Such an amazing piece of innovation.  We also loved their Mounting Cube “One Cube A Thousand Ideas”

Draper – we absolutely love the green Bunker portable storage range with lockable drawers, they are interlock able and they are easy to manoeuvre.  This product really has the tradesman in mind, everything you need all in one easy solution.  No need to keep going in an out of your van, just load up the lot and take it with you, priceless!

Looking ahead

The next International Hardware Fair 7-10 March 2028 and once again will be Tuesday to Friday.  You can register your interest now https://www.eisenwarenmesse.com

We are very much looking forward to Canton Fair week which takes place in April 2026, DIY week awards in London on the 22^nd May where Nils Kernchen will be providing a talk on Marketplaces in Europe and Clive and Kerry will be hosting the Trade Talks in the morning, June you will see us at the Global DIY Summit in Amsterdam, Spoga Gafa in Cologne and the Painting & Decorating show in the NEC in Birmingham,  September we love Glee again in Birmingham and we cannot miss Screwfix Live in Farnborough and then October DIY Week live in the NCC in Birmingham.  So many shows and not enough time!!

So if you are able to attend any of these shows, walk the halls with an open mind, don’t just hunt for what is on your list, hunt for the unexpected. 

Guaranteed you will not be disappointed.