PUB16 closed on 10th February on a high, with a reported increase in attendance of 11% from its inaugural year.

3,459 visitors took in the broad spread of 162 exhibitors, covering every aspect of the pub industry from integrated music systems and soft drinks to premium bar snacks and EPoS.

As the only trade show of its kind, exhibitors had the unique opportunity to meet, network and engage with a wide range of pub owners and operators from across the country, with 84% of those attending having purchasing authority - an increase of almost 20% on last year.

Featuring a stellar line-up of industry professionals in a series of thought-provoking seminars and talks at the Business Theatre, the show brought a number of key issues facing the pub industry to the surface.

The ‘State of the Nation’ talk with chairman of the British Institute of Innkeeping, Anthony Pender; chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, Brigid Simmonds; chief executive of CAMRA, Tim Page and chief executive of the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers, Kate Nicholls as chair, tackled the impact of issues such as community asset pubs and the living wage on the pub industry.

After an active and engaging debate, Anthony Pender ensured publicans left the talk feeling positive: “Our sector is tenacious and positive, let’s sustain that positivity and continue to innovate and survive.”

Recruitment was also on the agenda at Recruit – Train – Retain, a dedicated area of the show focusing on training and staffing. With sessions from industry experts such as Martin-Christian Kent, executive director at People 1st and an open training session led by director and head of UK compliance at CPL training Paul Chase which discussed the dilemmas of running premises in the night time economy.

Commenting on the success and quality of the show’s second year, event director Luke Perry said: “We are thrilled with the increase in attendance this year. The feedback for the show continues to be hugely positive from both exhibitors and attendees with over 3,400 visitors eager to hear and see new ideas and discover techniques and products for helping improve their pub offering and their profitability. We look forward to continuing this in 2017."

PUB17 takes place on 7 and 8 February 2017, returning to London’s Olympia.