I’m sure every painter and decorator is already aware, but the National Painting and Decorating show is an iconic even, hosted every year at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry (now called “Coventry Building Society” for some reason). All the major manufacturers get together to showcase their products on an epic scale.

I haven’t missed a show for about 8 years, and I’ve seen it change a lot. Covid put a stop to the National Painting and Decorating Show in 2020. They managed to go ahead with the event in 2021, but under covid restrictions and after a break. The show was smaller in size and had a completely different feel to it. No one knew whether the show was ever going to get back to its former glory.

National Painting and Decorating Show on Steroids!!

That’s until now. Having just attended the National Painting and Decorating Show 2022, I can safely say, it’s back! This year’s show was the best yet. There was a lot more space for an attendee to move around, which made things a lot less stressful, even though the show itself was busy. The stands were quality too!! Loads of new innovations and products for decorators to learn about. It’s also good to see a couple of companies stepping up to try and tackle paint waste. I’m no hippy by any means, but I recently learned that 50% of microplastics in our oceans come from paint, so something needs to change.

Big shout out to Oxera for reformulating their epoxy resins. It will be interesting to see how decorators take to it this coming summer. Italian Stucco is also one to watch. These guys have set-up shop in my hometown and offer training to tradesmen. Companies like this give decorators the chance to train and specialise in a specific craft, thus earning more money moving forward.

The social aspect of the National Painting and Decorating show is epic too. I met with hundreds of decorators from the various forums. We mostly drank beer and talked about how good the show was. It was great to see everyone. I’m just gutted I missed some of you. There’s so much going on, two people can spend a full day walking around the building and not even spot each other.

This year was easily the best show I’ve ever attended. Up until the start of the show, I was worried it may be in decline. Now I’m looking forward to it being even bigger and better next year.

National Painting and Decorating Show on Steroids – by Mike Cupit