Trade Show Vegan
goes to The Meetings Show

I was immediately thrown into the thick of things at Tuesday’s pre-show conference, which kicked off with a buffet networking lunch in the Platinum Suite. I was filled with excitement as I took in the plethora of options; three different kinds of vegan sandwich, a multitude of salads and grains – and even a delicious vegan chocolate brownie for dessert. The coronation chickpea sandwich deserves particular praise for being a fabulous filling and a clever bit of wordplay to boot. 

My lunch put me in such a good mood that when the pre-show conference kicked off with a deaf rave with Troi "DJ Chinaman" Lee and I was asked to don a vibrating “woojer” vest and start dancing in front of a room full of people, I was more than happy to oblige. Trade Show Vegans have more fun – it’s official! 

That evening we headed over to the O2 for the hosted buyer’s welcome reception at TOCA Social, the interactive football and dining experience. I knew I’d ticked the vegan box when registering, but was unsure of what this would mean in reality. After the joys of lunch, was I about to come crashing back to earth? I spotted trays full of mini burger sliders emerging from the kitchen, glistening under bright neon lights, and my heart sank. I was ravenous, and these sliders looked perfect, but there’s no way they were vegan, right? Actually, no, not right at all! Happily, these little beauties were plant-based from top to toe. I filled my plate with burgers, chips and a tasty salad and all was well with the world. 

The one thing I would say is that being vegan appeared to have no positive effect on my footballing skills; going up against colleagues in one of TOCA Social’s football challenges revealed me to be as terrible at the game as I have ever been. Ah, you can’t have everything. 

The next morning it was up bright and breezy and down to the breakfast buffet. Marching straight past the bacon and eggs, I splashed some soya milk over a bowl of granola, grabbed a glass of orange juice and felt like the embodiment of virtue. All that slow-release energy from those oats I was chowing down on were going to come in useful, as I had a packed morning conducting interviews with the great and good of the sector for TMS TV, the show’s TV channel. 

When I finally found a spare half hour to grab some lunch, I nipped out onto the main boulevard and headed to the nearest food vendor. Italian place, brilliant – pasta Arrabbiatta please, and hold the parmesan. Job done, and it was back to the interviewing grindstone. 

Midway through the afternoon I was hit with a need for a pick-me-up of some kind, which Costa provided in the form of an oat milk latte and a fruity flapjack (although that particular chain could offer more in the way of sweet vegan treats, in my humble opinion…)

Towards the end of the day I headed to the Blank Canvas area for a session with Brighton Gin to learn about their independent, open-minded brand values and focus on sustainable and ethical production. When it came round to time for a taste (which was only partly why I was there, honest!) I was relieved to learn that Brighton Gin is certified vegan by the Vegan Society – even down to the wax and gum on its labels. Global ambassador Rachel Blake’s message of the importance of taking the time to be better really resonated with this Trade Show Vegan. 

First day done, it was back to the hotel, quick change and meet up with colleagues in the bar. A quick Google confirmed my suspicion that Guinness was vegan (although only since it changed its filtration process in 2016 - before that it was filtered using fish bladders!) and as we enjoyed a well-earned pint we talked about where to go out for some food.

You may remember that at IMEX in Frankfurt my colleagues chose to go to a steakhouse, which proved mildly challenging on the plant-based front. So what did they have in store this time? Well, as it turns out, the hotel bar was a good place to be and no one was in a hurry to go anywhere at all. The decision was made to order pizzas from the bar menu and stay where we were. 

I took a look at the menu to see what this meant for me: I soon realised it meant I’d be going hungry – there were no vegan options. Deciding Guinness and crisps wasn’t an acceptable meal, l I dashed round the corner to a Lebanese restaurant where I had a swift fattoush and kibbeh feast, pleased that the Trade Show Vegan had managed to remain undefeated. 

The Meetings Show itself has plans to reach net zero by 2050 and cut carbon emissions by 50 per cent by 2030. Using isla’s measurement platform TRACE, the show collected travel, waste, catering and energy data, which will be used to create a full Event Impact Report. 

Furniture at the show was hired from existing stock, the volume of printed materials was greatly reduced and replaced with digital signage, and – most exciting from a Trade Show Vegan point of view - the food being served in the central lounge bar was plant-based and red meat did not feature on the Hosted Buyer Lounge menu. 

It wasn’t just the show making an effort either, as a venue London ExCeL also aided my plant-based requirements. A tip off from Priya Narain about ExCeL’s Pakistani street food stall Baba Dhaba proved very useful, their Aloo Tikki naan wrap is comfortably the best thing I’ve eaten in the venue. 

Throughout the show, veganism and sustainability came up as topics time and time again. Perfect strangers came and told me that I’d inspired them to go plant-based for lunch that day. Standing in line at the Bagel Factory out of nowhere someone told me “I bet I can guess what you’re having – the Vegan Cream Cheese Stack!” Which of course I was.

But the biggest shout out must go to Lucinda Jones of Visit Brighton who took on the Trade Show Vegan challenge, absolutely smashed it - and has committed to becoming a Trade Show Vegan for the foreseeable future!

Two shows in, Trade Show Vegan has been nothing but a positive experience all round, whether it's sustainability, inclusivity or health and wellbeing. I'm looking forward to the next outing, whenever that may be - but in the meantime feel free to take on the challenge yourself - and share your journey with me at [email protected] or on Linkedin. I look forward to hearing from you!