Posted by Natalie Randall
For the rest of the Nixon team, it really doesn’t feel like a whole year has passed since we were talking about how unusual it might be to find the presence of a creative design agency at an agricultural show. However as we have been exhibiting there for the best part of ten years, it has become somewhat of an addictive tradition.
For me, the newbie at Nixon, this was my first time exhibiting – and indeed attending. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, and certainly didn’t anticipate record visitor numbers exceeding 126,000. Presumably far more than when my grandmother did the same whilst working for SWEB in 1951.
This year we jumped at the chance of sharing the Nixon stand with our friends from The Lost Gardens of Heligan. We’ve been working together for 20 years and there seemed no better way to mark the occasion than a celebration of our work on their new website. This will be the fourth time we’ve re-vamped it, each time embracing the latest technology to provide them with flexible and modern solutions. Lorna and James brought along Diggory, their resident scarecrow, fresh from the vegetable patch. This created quite a stir amongst scarecrow hunters on the trail in support of RABI (the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution). “Look! It’s Diggory!” shrieked numerous excited children, much to the confusion of our Creative Director, also named Diggory (we decided to call him ‘Badger’ from that point on).
Over the show’s three days we were joined by family, friends and clients; familiar faces and new, met interesting people with whom we’d love to work, guzzled (responsibly so) Sipsmith Summer Cup, and devoured sumptuous smoked duck canapés provided by our friends at Cornish Duck. We launched their website during the show, and I can honestly say first-hand that their products are downright delicious.
Despite having a stand to attend to, I did manage to explore the rest of the show and the multitude of things it has to offer: from freshly shorn alpacas and ferret racing to the comedic Sheep Show, which shone sheep shearing in a whole new light.
We are so fortunate in Cornwall to be surrounded by countless fantastic businesses, run by people with a passion for their trade; whatever it may be – design, ducks or green fingered Diggory-owners. With my first show under my belt, and knowledge that exhibiting there is clearly in the family blood, I’ve already started planning what we can do at our stand next year.
P.S. It's now live! Check out the new Heligan site