Guide
Shell scheme vs space only: the decision that sets your stand budget
Updated
This is the first thing you buy and the thing everything else depends on. Get it wrong and you are either paying for walls you did not need, or building walls you did not budget for.
What you are actually buying
- Shell scheme
- The organiser erects a standard structure across a whole hall: partition walls, a fascia board with your company name, usually carpet, and a defined height. You take a numbered box within it and dress the inside. Cheapest way onto a floor, and the fastest to organise.
- Space only
- You buy floor area and nothing else. No walls, no fascia, sometimes no carpet. Everything visible is designed, built, transported, installed and removed by your stand builder, and it must comply with the organiser's regulations and height limits.
- Custom build on space only
- Not a third space type, but the reason most people take space only: a stand designed around what you are actually showing, rather than around a partition system that treats you as identical to the neighbours.
The trade-offs, honestly
| Shell scheme | Space only | |
|---|---|---|
| Walls and fascia | Included by the organiser | You build them, or you have none |
| Floor | Usually carpeted by the organiser | Bare, unless you lay a floor |
| Design freedom | Limited to the inside of a fixed box | Whatever the show regulations allow |
| Build labour on site | Light: graphics, furniture, lighting | Full build-up and breakdown crews |
| Approval process | Minimal | Drawings and often structural sign-off |
| Where it wins | Small stands, first shows, tight budgets | Larger stands, repeat exhibitors, brand-led presence |
The mistake almost everyone makes once
Taking space only because it sounds better value per square metre, then discovering that walls, flooring, lighting, structural drawings and two crew shifts were the actual product. Space only is not cheaper floor, it is unfinished floor. Conversely, taking shell scheme for a large stand and paying to hide the organiser's walls behind your own panels is paying twice for the same wall.
How to decide in four questions
- How big is the space? Small stands usually get more value from a well-dressed shell scheme than from a modest custom build.
- How many shows will you do this year? If the answer is more than one, price a reusable system before you price a one-off. See modular versus custom.
- Do you need to be seen from across the hall? Height, rigging and lighting are space-only conversations, and they need organiser approval.
- Who is doing the work? Space only assumes a builder and an internal owner with time. If neither exists, shell scheme is the honest choice. Get both priced with our quote form and compare.
Whatever you pick, the organiser's technical manual is the document that governs the build: heights, materials, rigging rules, build schedules and approval deadlines all live there. Read it before you sign off a design, not after.