Each year, The Running Event (TRE) brings together brands across the running ecosystem (from footwear and apparel to wearables, recovery, and performance gear).
The Running Event 2025 took place December 2–4, 2025 at the Henry B. González Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas. And according to the Trade Show Executive, this was the largest show since TRE started in 2006, with more than 5,300 attendees and 357 brands coming together this year.
Which makes sense, as ShopEatSurf x Outdoor reported that, “While the overall sports equipment market declined by 1% over the 12 months ending August 2025, certain segments are performing well, such as running/walking in apparel and footwear[…]”
In addition to this being a growing show, TentCraft attends for two reasons.
First, many of the brands we work with are on the show floor, building booths, testing new formats, and rethinking how they engage retailers and athletes.
Second, experiential marketing is evolving quickly, and staying relevant means paying close attention to how brands are investing in their event infrastructure.
Rather than keeping those observations to ourselves, we’re sharing them with you.
Here are five experiential trends and takeaways that stood out to us at this year’s show. For running, outdoor, and performance-driven brands, these offer a useful snapshot of how experiential expectations are evolving.
*Trends 4 and 5 were our favorites.
TL;DR Takeaways:
The Running Event continues to grow, reaching its largest attendance since 2006 and signaling sustained momentum in the running category.
LED screens are now core to experiential design, serving as primary storytelling tools rather than supporting booth elements.
Vertical visibility is essential, with double-deck exhibits and hanging banners playing a critical role in wayfinding and brand presence.
Experiential booths are mirroring real-world running environments, using terrain, textures, and outdoor cues to add context and emotional connection.
Some brands are trying booth strategies around intentional restraint , as brands used clean exteriors and controlled reveals to create curiosity and deeper engagement.
At The Running Event this year, LED screens weren’t just supporting booth design — they were the experience.
Experiential teams are continuing to integrate large-format LED screens, modular video walls, and strategically placed monitors directly into their activations. Some brands used towering LED walls as backdrops, others embedded screens into product displays or demo stations, and many leaned on motion content to keep their spaces feeling alive throughout the day.
Dynamic storytelling - Screens let brands showcase multiple messages, products, or use cases in the same footprint, no reprints, no rebuilds
Faster message testing - Content can be updated overnight, rotated hourly, and customized for different audiences walking the floor
Stronger ROI on booth real estate - Because one screen can do the work of several static graphics, and LEDs can be produced in all shapes and sizes, the initial, significant investment still provides a strong ROI
Motion breaks the visual monotony - In a hall filled with static signage, movement naturally draws attention.
Context matters - Short product loops, athlete clips, terrain footage, and lifestyle visuals help attendees immediately understand who the brand is for.
Passive learning - Not everyone wants a sales pitch right away. Screens let people absorb information on their own terms before engaging.
LED screens are no longer treated like tech accessories. They’re being planned as core components of the booth narrative.
This isn’t the first time we’ve called out how prominent LEDs have become at trade shows. A few months ago, reps from TentCraft and World Class Displays (our sister-brand) attended the NACS conference and noted them in our takeaways for that show as well.
Double-decker booths continue to earn their keep and at The Running Event, they weren’t just about flexing square footage. They were about using vertical space more intelligently.
For larger brands, double-deckers are still one of the clearest ways to signal scale and confidence on a crowded show floor. When everyone is competing at eye level, going up creates instant visibility from across the hall.
But what stood out this year was how brands were using that second level — not just that they had one.
Maximum impact without expanding the footprint - Vertical builds help brands dominate visually without needing massive floor space.
Clear zoning - Downstairs stays open, energetic, and product-forward; upstairs becomes focused and intentional.
Brand authority - Fair or not, height still communicates investment, permanence, and leadership.
Private meeting spaces up top - Many brands used the second level for quieter conversations such as buyer meetings and partner discussions.
Not surprisingly, more brands are thinking vertically, and so are we.
In response to what we’re seeing across the show floors, TentCraft now offers double-decker structures as part of our trade show and event solutions. If you’re exploring ways to create more visibility and more meaningful space at your next show, you can learn more on our trade show page.
At The Running Event, it became clear pretty quickly: if your brand wasn’t visible from above, you were already at a disadvantage.
Hanging banners have moved from “nice-to-have” to must-have for brands looking to stand out in large, crowded halls (despite battling the exorbitant rates event centers charge to hang them). With long sightlines and dense booth layouts, experiential teams are increasingly relying on overhead signage to help attendees orient themselves and to make sure their brand is found before their competitors’.
They act as wayfinding tools - Attendees use overhead banners to navigate the show floor.
They extend brand presence beyond the footprint - Similarly, A banner doesn’t just mark a booth’s location it broadcasts a brand’s presence across the hall.
They create continuity - Hanging signage visually anchors the booth below, helping disparate elements feel like one cohesive experience.
They draw the eye up in busy environments - When everything at eye level competes for attention, vertical contrast cuts through the noise.
They reduce perceived chaos - Overhead banners help define space, making booths feel intentional rather than lost in open ceiling volume.
They signal commitment - A hanging banner subtly communicates that a brand planned ahead, invested thoughtfully, and expects to be found.
For a show rooted in running, movement, and time spent outside, experiential teams brought in micro-landscapes, using rocks, grasses, gravel paths, wood textures, and terrain-inspired flooring to simulate the environments runners actually train and compete in.
And yes, one team even brought a sloth because - why not?
Instant context - Terrain cues immediately communicate where and how a product is meant to be used.
Emotional connection - Nature-forward elements tap into why many people run in the first place—escape, clarity, endurance.
Differentiation through restraint - In a hall full of screens and structures, tactile, natural elements offer an equally engrossing way to capture people’s attention.
It slows people down - Textures underfoot and organic visuals create a pause moment—rare on a busy show floor.
It feels authentic - Subtle landscape cues feel earned, not staged.
It invites exploration - These spaces encourage people to step in, look closer, and immerse themselves in the booth experience
This continues the trend in which brands aren’t just showcasing products anymore, they’re recreating the environments those products live in. When done well, it turns a booth visit into a small mental reset (even if you’re still technically indoors, under fluorescent lights, wearing a badge).
Some of the most compelling activations at The Running Event didn’t try to grab attention with everything at once. Instead, they did the opposite.
Several brands created clean, restrained exteriors, using walls or partial enclosures that felt simple and intentional from the outside. You’d be greeted by single color walls or translucent borders with minimal branding or screen presence.
Just enough of the activation was revealed to make attendees curious about what was happening inside.
It turns out, a little mystery goes a long way.
Curiosity beats clutter - In a crowded hall, not showing everything can be more compelling than trying to show it all.
Controlled storytelling - Enclosures let brands design the experience in sequence, think entry, discovery, engagement.
Noise reduction - Physical boundaries create a perceptible shift from the chaos of the aisle to a more focused brand environment.
It feels intentional and rewards effort - A defined threshold signals that what’s inside is worth stepping into. Attendees who cross that boundary get a more immersive, considered experience.
This approach stood out because it was confident. It trusted the experience enough to let people discover it. And that’s why this was our favorite takeaway.
Whether it’s screens doing the storytelling, vertical builds creating space for better conversations, or environments that invite curiosity instead of shouting for attention, experiential design is becoming more intentional across the board.
That’s why shows like The Running Event matter to us. They’re where ideas get tested in real time and where the future of brand engagement quietly takes shape.
We’ll keep paying attention, asking questions, and sharing what we’re seeing.