UK - PLASA Focus Leeds returned to its home at the Royal Armouries on 14 and 15 May, with two packed show halls, a bigger-than-ever seminar programme, and record-breaking attendance figures.
This year’s PLASA Focus Leeds saw a 19% increase in attendance, with a strong visitor profile on par with previous shows. 1/5 were company directors, owners or chairs, equally representing audio, AV, lighting and staging tech. This year saw 1/5 students too, over double last year’s figures, signalling a strong future for the industry.
Matt Wiseman from MDG Fog UK says: “As a company, we’re now 10 years into the journey with PLASA Focus Leeds being a key date in our UK diary. Each year we have experienced more footfall to our stand and especially this year. The quality of visitor was again noticeably higher and we expect to see another record breaking year. We will be booking for 2025 for continued growth without fail.”
Prolight Concepts (UK) Ltd says: “This year's PLASA Focus Leeds was one of the best we have attended. The stand was constantly busy throughout the show, and our unique and exciting products drew both familiar and new faces to discuss all things Prolight. The whole atmosphere and networking opportunities at the show is great for distributors and event/rental companies.”
Richard McLean from d&b audiotechnik adds: “This year, PLASA Focus Leeds felt like another fantastic show, once again giving us a great opportunity to connect with the market. The show remains a firm feature in our event calendar and continues to provide a really good foot fall from a cross section of our industry.”
Big names & new names
215 brands were represented across two sold-out show halls, each showcasing an abundance of new products and services spanning pro audio, AV, lighting, staging and rigging.
Lily Day from Stage Electrics says: “Wow what a show! The Stage Electrics team had a really great time showcasing all the great products and services that we provide. It was wonderful to mingle with such an innovative, friendly and exciting community of experts.”
PLASA Focus Leeds welcomed plenty of new faces too, including Le Maitre who were returning after many years, plus Solutions On Stage and ROE Visual who were exhibiting for the first time.
Marina Prak from ROE Visual adds: “The intimate nature of the event served as a catalyst for meaningful conversations and productive networking. As first-time exhibitors, we were pleasantly surprised by the positive experience at the show, which proved to be a valuable platform for ROE Visual. We look forward to participating again in the future.”
Brands spilled out into the buzzing courtyard too, with Denmark-based SOWA showcasing their wireless audio solutions, alongside vibrant food and drink stalls and plenty of friendly networking.
Villads Sørensen from SOWA says: “Attending PLASA Focus Leeds for the first time provided SOWA with a great platform to showcase our professional audio solutions. Covering the outdoor area allowed us to connect directly with industry professionals and new potential clients. The event was an excellent opportunity for networking and has opened doors for future collaborations.”
An abundance of UK launches
The show set the stage for several UK product launches, including headline sponsor Ambersphere who brought along two new lighting products from Ayrton - the Kyalami and Nando 502 Wash. Further lighting debuts included Chauvet Professional’s Strike Bolt 1C strobe, Robe’s iBolt moving light, Martin’s MAC Viper XIP, Robert Juliat’s Tristan LED followspot, and GLP’s JDC2 IP strobe.
Plenty of audio was on show too, with UK debuts including Funktion-One’s Evo 2 and Tour Rack Amp, Shure’s Nexadyne microphone, KV2 Audio’s EX28 loudspeaker, and GreenWaves’ 2U solar-powered amplifier.
Andrew Bishop from Reclaim Audio says: “We demonstrated the GreenWaves solar-powered 4kw power amplifier and event power bank and scanned a new lead every seven minutes at a very busy PLASA Focus Leeds.”
Bigger-than-ever programme
Boasting 31 talks and panels and a further 18 demo and training sessions, this year’s PLASA Focus Leeds programme delivered something for everyone. The programme sponsors, Vectorworks, offered two sessions, detailing the new features of Spotlight and ConnectCAD as well as new the pre-production plugins.
Dana Valovska from Vectorworks says: “We were thrilled to sponsor the seminars at PLASA Focus Leeds once again this year. The event attracted a large audience, with presentations that offered a wealth of knowledge to everyone in the industry.”
Attendees were also curious about future-focussed technology, with popular sessions on video games with Copper Candle, AI in technical theatre with the University of Lincoln, and the use of technology in lighting with the ALPD.
This innovative theme continued into the audio sector with keen interest in sessions on audio quality from the University of Derby as well as Solotech, SSE Audio, KV2 Audio and Linea Research. Plus, the topic of spatial and immersive audio was popular, with sessions from Outboard, Sonosphere, and the ASDP.
Sustainability was high on the agenda too, with specialist lighting sessions from Robe and White Light. In addition, sessions on careers were well attended, with CREATE Britain, SoulSound and Adlib presenting pathways in the live sector.
Elsewhere, attendees were treated to pro audio demonstrations from KV2 Audio and SSL Live, allowing visitors to hear brand new audio tech and speak with knowledgeable brand representatives. Plus, ChamSys conducted practical training sessions throughout the show, including feature sessions on Group Cues and FX and GeNetix Network Distribution.
Alex Pole from ChamSys UK says: “PLASA Focus Leeds is the perfect place to engage with current and new users. Whether on the booth or in the training suite, it is great to see people asking questions and learning tips and tricks to get the most out of our products.”
Dates set for next year
PLASA Focus Leeds is already on track to return in 2025 from 13-14 May, with the usual high calibre of brands and features. PLASA’s Head of Events, Sophie Atkinson, concludes: “We’re delighted to see PLASA Focus Leeds continue to grow. Despite a few seasonal downpours, our industry came out in droves to see and hear what’s new. Thank you to each and every exhibitor, speaker and visitor, as well as the PLASA team for contributing to such a great show. We can’t wait to do it all again next year.”
PLASA Focus Leeds 2025 takes place on 13-14 May at the Royal Armouries in Leeds. Sign up for email alerts at https://www.plasaleeds.com/register-interest
