Spring Fair returns to the NEC Birmingham from February 1-4 2026, unveiling an inspiring new creative direction themed Retail Alchemists – Masters of the Mix. The Alchemists of Retail
Marking a bold new era for the retail event, this campaign signals Spring Fair’s transformation from a marketplace into an experience; a living, breathing celebration of retail’s power to inspire, connect, evolve, and transform. This is retail reimagined: immersive, sensory, and alive with possibility.
No longer just a destination for buying and selling, Spring Fair 2026 becomes a stage where creativity, commerce, and community collide. It celebrates the Masters of the Mix – the retailers who curate the unexpected, the suppliers who spark what’s next, and the visionaries who turn stock into stories and shops into stages.
For over 75 years, Spring Fair has united the best of retail, bringing together thousands of brands, suppliers, and buyers to discover, collaborate, and shape the seasons ahead. The 2026 edition builds on that legacy with an expanded footprint, a re-energised visitor experience, and a bold new programme of content, networking and design-led innovation.
Across the show, visitors will experience the Retail Alchemists theme through a series of beautifully curated spaces designed to engage all five senses and visionary new content areas that reimagine what trade shows can be. Each destination becomes a modern apothecary of ideas, where people, products, and stories combine to create something truly extraordinary.
Jackson Szabo, portfolio director at Hyve Group, said: “Spring Fair 2026 marks a new chapter for the show. Retail Alchemists captures what happens when creativity, community and commerce converge. We’re creating an environment where discovery and connection are as important as the products themselves. By bringing together the right ingredients – product, design, storytelling and technology – Spring Fair 2026 becomes the alchemy that forges meaningful connections, unlocks opportunity and inspires transformation.
“Visitors should feel like they’re stepping into a living marketplace where ideas, people and products mix. It’s immersive without being overwhelming, beautiful without being superficial, and always aligned to the purpose of driving retail forward.”
