CATEGORY 26 AUSTRALASIAN DENTIST EVENTS A recent trip to the UK coincided with the Dentistry Show in London, held at the ExCeL Convention Centre at Royal Victoria Dock, so I thought I would check it out and compare it to the dental exhibitions held here in Australia. On a particularly gloomy Friday morning, I braved the London Tube system and made my way to the Newham area of East London, located between Canary Wharf and London City Airport. This is not the most inspiring area of London, and its slightly depressing feel was probably heightened by the poor weather and the bizarre number of abandoned cars on the streets around the convention centre. The convention centre itself, as you might expect, hosts many trade events and also provides entertainment, which currently includes a ‘Squid Game’ experience and an interactive show based on the hit TV series Friends. Now, I know not every dental exhibition can match the scale of Cologne or Chicago Mid-Winter, but being a London event, I was expecting something a bit grander and more avant-garde compared to our homegrown events. However, as soon as I stepped into the exhibition halls, it felt very ‘same-same’. The layout was almost identical to the last ADX I attended: three ‘silent lecture’ areas, larger stands in the centre, and small booths around the sides and back of the halls. All the usual names – Colgate, A-dec, and Align – were represented, along with a plethora of localised smaller providers, including numerous marketing companies, software providers, and an abundance of scrubs and loops. What was missing, however, was anything radically new or different. None of the stands were pushing the boundaries to draw attention; one offered free coffee, many handed out chocolates and pens, and the most interesting interaction came at the Amex stand, which offered a customised snack box while discussing whether and how you used Amex in your practice. To be frank, it all felt a little too predictable and somewhat dull. What was not lacking, however, was the crowd. The show was packed, to the point of making it actually hard to walk down the aisles – fantastic for the exhibitors who had invested in their stands. All in all, the Dentistry Show in London is worth attending if you happen to be in the city for the next event, but it is certainly not worth a dedicated trip in the way Cologne can justify. X To register for the 2026 event visit https:// london.dentistryshow.co.uk/ Dentistry Show – London – October 2025 By Carl Burroughs
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTc3NDk3Mw==