A 100% B2B trade show reserved for its network: ORCAB centralises more than 6,000 visitor registrations with inwink

ORCAB (Organisation des Coopératives d’Achat pour les Artisans du Bâtiment) is the French organisation of purchasing cooperatives for building craftsmen. Founded in 1990, it now brings together more than 9,600 craft businesses in a network built on cooperation, proximity and shared values.

Every two years, ORCAB organises the Salon des artisans en coopérative, the group’s flagship event. This 100% B2B event is exclusively reserved for craftsmen who are members of the affiliated cooperatives and for the network’s approved suppliers.

The show took place on 18 and 19 March 2026 at the Parc des Expositions de la Beaujoire in Nantes, France. Over two days, it brought together nearly 11,000 people and nearly 500 exhibitors, and was a highlight in the life of the network.

The challenge lies in the nature of the event. A private trade show, whose participants are identified by their membership of the network, cannot be organised like a show open to the public: only invited people can register, and each profile follows its own access rules.

For this edition, the teams relied on the inwink event management platform to organise the show and manage visitor registrations.

The implementation of inwink had to meet the following objectives:

Registration journeys adapted to the cooperative model

The Salon des artisans en coopérative is a private trade show. It brings together craftsmen who are members of the affiliated cooperatives and the network’s approved suppliers, which involves specific rules and journeys, different from standard event ticketing.

With inwink, the team was able to adapt visitor registrations to the different invited profiles and centralise their management in a single database. Each profile follows the journey that suits it, without the teams having to keep separate files for each cooperative or type of guest.

More than 6,000 visitors registered for the 2026 edition, across 8 distinct registration profiles.

Event website of the Salon des artisans en coopérative.

A mobile app to prepare the visit and follow it on site

Before the show, participants prepare their visit directly from the app. They browse the exhibitors and their detailed profiles, add them to their favourites, explore the programme and select the workshops, conferences or training sessions they are interested in.

Once on site, they find all their selections in their personal agenda, so they know which highlights are scheduled and can plan their route throughout the day. They also receive reminder notifications for their sessions.

With two days and nearly 500 exhibitors, this advance preparation changes the nature of the visit: craftsmen arrive with a list of suppliers to meet rather than a floor plan to decipher.

The app was downloaded 3,340 times for the 2026 edition.

The show’s mobile app: home screen and practical information.

Check-in and lead capture connected to the same database

On site, check-in is managed with inwink OnSite, using the same data entered at registration, with no re-entry and no printed lists.

Exhibiting suppliers who subscribed to the scanning option scan the badges of the craftsmen they meet on their stand with inwink LeadGen, and retrieve their contacts directly, without waiting for a file after the show.

40% of exhibitors subscribed to and used the visitor scanning module, and nearly 17,000 contacts were scanned by exhibitors at the 2026 edition.

A centralised event set-up

Event website, visitor registrations, participant management, email communications, on-site check-in and mobile app are brought together in a single environment.

This centralisation helps the teams limit the number of tools and share a common view of participants and their journey, while making it easier to manage an event bringing together nearly 11,000 participants and nearly 500 exhibitors.

The digital set-up thus supports network members from registration to their on-site journey, with one shared goal: making it easier for member craftsmen, cooperatives and suppliers to connect.