Interview with Matthieu Michaud, CEO of Expace

For several years, Matthieu Michaud has been leading EXPACE, a company expert in the design and realization of layouts, showrooms, stands, event spaces, and roadshows.

EXPACE presents itself as a player with strong notoriety in the highly competitive sector of space design for the enhancement of product and service offerings; Matthieu, its discreet General Director, is not short of projects, and in a unique context of a global health crisis, he shares his thoughts and outlines some perspectives that will guide EXPACE in the post-crisis days. A candid interview…

Matthieu, tell us about EXPACE and, at the same time, talk to us about yourself.

EXPACE was founded in 1993 by Richard Bertrand, François Buret, and Jean Galonnier. Jean is currently the President of EXPACE, while the other two historic co-founders have recently claimed their rightful retirement (well-deserved!). These three men have patiently shaped what EXPACE is today, a solid and respected player in the industry. For my part, I have been with EXPACE for 13 years. I started my career in events, and at EXPACE, I was in charge of business until I gradually took on more responsibilities, notably that of General Director. Regarding Covid-19 and its consequences, the entire event sector has been brutally affected. In an emergency, we faced cancellations and rescheduling of services, particularly for French and global trade shows. We then organized ourselves digitally for our designers and support functions, in a "health security" mode for our manufacturing operators. We ensure the continuity of our services, and more than ever, we stand by our clients.

Your heart activity must be under severe strain…

Yes, you speak of a candid portrait… the image is interesting. Our heart rate is indeed often put to the test, as throughout the year, we manage around twenty major projects simultaneously. The slightest hitch in the works can derail the execution of a project. A trade show, a forum, these are fixed dates. Rescheduling does not exist in our profession! Therefore, this is often what sets us apart from our competitors; we control the chain from project design to installation. In the meantime, our manufacturing department secures the development timelines. Then, candidly, as one must love to continually reinvent oneself for our clients, help them progress, and provide this heartfelt service!

(P)artisan of quality: this is somewhat your motto.

Delivering a beautiful space is not everything in our job. We enjoy collaboration with our clients’ teams, and internally, we are developing this more and more. Quality is our trademark; we apply it from the beginning of the project to installation to provide a genuine response to clients. Beyond the creativity needed for any project, we also invite our clients to consider the environmental dimension of their realizations.

Beyond the creativity needed for any project, we also invite our clients to consider the environmental dimension of their realizations.

In the world of the ephemeral, how can we think sustainably?

It is possible. We have, for example, created a digital platform that allows clients who regularly exhibit not to always have to recreate the same elements. Reusing components and equipment is one example. We have also developed a specific tool to collect and utilize visitor data from a trade show. The tool allows for qualifying leads and sending them the (right) documentation in digital support. We choose our wood and printing suppliers labeled in exemplary chains (PEFC, Imprim’vert). We also work with resource recovery organizations to give new life to our furniture, our carpets, and exhibition carpets... ideas and actions abound: in any case, we want to give a vision to our profession.

What are the development prospects for EXPACE?

Our history has made us creators of versatile spaces, capable of imagining the most beautiful, the most spectacular stands, and this in a thousand and one situations. This acquired expertise gives us a real legitimacy to design more sustainable spaces. It is a genuine growth axis: our recent designs and realizations of showrooms or collaborative spaces are proof of that. The other axis I wish to develop is