With Insight Into Our Recent 20×30 Exhibit for Black Duck
Ever wondered what it takes to transform a killer custom trade show booth idea into a jaw-dropping reality? At Highway 85, we don’t just build exhibits—we engineer brand experiences that command attention.
Buckle up, because we’re taking you behind the scenes of how we take a concept from sketch to show floor like absolute bosses.
1. Discovery: Where the Magic Begins
Before we even pick up a tool, we dive deep into your brand’s DNA. This isn’t just brainstorming—it’s a full-on brand immersion. We review your existing marketing, event materials, and brand identity to ensure your booth doesn’t just stand out—it owns the damn space. Collaboration is key, so we lock in with your team to refine the vision until it’s razor-sharp.
- Our Priority: Deep brand immersion, strategic alignment, alignment on
- Your Priority: Provide brand identity information and existing assets as examples
- Outcome: A concept that SLAYS from day one!
Black Duck Spotlight: A Proven Partnership
The Highway 85 and Black Duck teams have worked hand-in-hand for years. This discovery meeting was all about leveling up—getting aligned on where the brand wants to go in 2025 and how we can help make that vision real.
2. Design: Where Engineering Meets Art
This is where we get technical on the Highway side, and where our Artistic Director and Design Director tap in.
Our design team doesn’t just make things look good, they engineer them to function flawlessly. Materials are handpicked for durability, impact, and wow factor. Want LED-lit acrylic panels? A towering backlit display? A life sized version of your product? Consider it done.
We work hand-in-hand with your team, refining every detail until the 3D renderings look so f*cking good, you’ll want to live in them.
- Our Priority: Top-tier aesthetics, spot-on material selection, seamless client collaboration
- Your Priority: Feedback, approvals, brand consistency
- Outcome: A design that’s ready to be made into reality
Black Duck Spotlight: Creative That Hits the Mark
Black Duck already has strong name recognition on the trade show floor, but how do we flip the script and give them a fresh, unexpected presence?
We explored ways to disrupt expectations and reinvent the booth experience without losing the brand’s core identity.
3. Fabrication: Where Sh!t Gets Real
This is where the Highway 85 workshop turns to focus on your project. Our skilled craftsmen don’t just build, they sculpt your brand from raw materials. Wood, acrylic, LEDs—you name it, we shape it. Every weld, cut, and finish is executed with expert precision because we don’t believe in “good enough.”
- Our Priority: Precision craftsmanship, quality builds, timeline adherence
- Your Priority: Preparing to be WOWEd as the progress images roll in
- Outcome: A booth built like a tank, polished like a show car
Black Duck Spotlight: LEDs That Make an Impact
LED’s were a BIG priority for our Black Duck booth. To establish them as an authority, strategic lighting played a huge role in emphasizing authority.
4. Staging & Quality Assurance (QA): No Room for Error
Before your booth hits the road, you always have the option for us to stage it in-house. Why? Because we need to see it, touch it, and stress-test it to ensure it looks exactly like the render, if not better.
Our QA process is ruthless because we know the show floor doesn’t forgive mistakes.
- Our Priority: Flawless execution, structural integrity, visual perfection
- Your Priority: Come on-site to the Workshop to review (at your request)
- Outcome: A booth that’s show-ready, no surprises
Black Duck Spotlight: Creative That Hits the Mark
We rigorously tested the hanging globe’s stability, blasted the LEDs through a 24-hour burn-in to ensure flawless illumination, and precision-fit every graphic down to the millimeter. No guesswork, no compromises—just battle-ready execution.
5. Packing: The Art of Bulletproof Logistics
Our warehouse team doesn’t just pack, they fortify.
Every panel, graphic, and component is organized and secured for battle (aka shipping). We optimize for fast, frustration-free setup because nobody’s got time for on-site headaches.
- Our Priority: Damage-proof packing, organized and labeled components
- Your Priority: Provide any additional items that you’re going to need on-site (like swag giveaways!)
- Outcome: A booth that’s ready to dominate
Black Duck: Packing at Its Peak
We jigged custom crates in-house to ensure easy setup on the show site. These give major cadillac vibes thanks to being lined with felt on the inside in addition to the jigging. The result? Every single piece is wrapped up in a pretty bow.
6. Shipping: Locked, Loaded, and On Time
We don’t just ship, we deploy. Whether it’s a cross-country trek or an international haul, we ensure your booth arrives on time, intact, and ready to kill it at the show.
- Our Priority: Reliable carriers, tracking, contingency planning
- Your Priority: Receiving logistics updates
- Outcome: No delivery disasters, no frantic last-minute scrambles
Black Duck: Tapped Into Long-Term Contractor for Shipping
We used our go-to trusted shipping partner, Team Worldwide, who have 30+ years in the trade show shipping industry. They’re so awesome (shoutout Suzanne) that they’ve contracted directly with a ton of our clients already. There’s no one we trust more!
7. On-Site Setup: We’ve Got Your Six
Things have just gotten started in terms of your brand’s domination at the show. Our team supervises setup to ensure everything’s perfect. Lights? Flawless. Graphics? Crisp. Brand presence? Unstoppable.
- Our Priority: Seamless installation, ensuring client peace of mind
- Your Priority: Watch your dream become a reality!
- Outcome: A booth that looks even better in person
Highway receives daily Reports provided by Momentum team, which our on-site supervisor is already clued into, of course.
Black Duck: Three Days of Smooth Setup
Our Black Duck exhibit took three days to set up. This included ironing out nuances with the electrical LED globe before hanging, setting the custom flooring, and adding the final touches and cleaning before the client arrived. We had our Director of Special Tech, Joe, on-site to supervise setup of the tech in addition to our full-time traveling field supervisor Ron.
8. Post-Show Service: The Encore
The show’s over, but the momentum isn’t. We leverage Highway’s owned channels to showcase your booth in action, because killer designs deserve an encore.
We also debrief from the project to ensure we’ve hit ALL of our success criteria 10x.
- Our Priority: Project review, content creation on Highway’s socials
- Your Priority: Providing event content, testimonials, or case study input
- Outcome: Extended ROI, brand buzz that keeps going
Black Duck: Positive Feedback & Shooting For The Stars For Next Year
We just conducted our post show meeting with Black Duck to get feedback, and we’re thrilled to report that our work exceeded their expectations. This client has two “super bowls” shows, RSA being one of them and Black Hat being the other – and we’re locked and loaded with prep to make sure we build on the great momentum we started at this show.
The Bottom Line
This isn’t just booth building. It’s brand elevation at every stage.
From the first sketch to the final strike, Highway delivers trade show experiences that don’t just turn heads—they crush goals.
Ready to make your next exhibit legendary? Let’s f*cking go. 🚀
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