Exhibition Stand Information

The RMS is pleased to announce the timeline for booking exhibition stands at IMC21. Bookings will open in September 2025 as follows:

Exhibition Dates

Exhibition build up dates: Friday 28 August - Sunday 30 August 2026

Exhibition open: Monday 31 August - Thursday 3 September 2026

Exhibition breakdown dates: Thursday 3 September - Friday 4 September 2026 (Times TBC)

Stand Costs & Payment Plans

At IMC21 exhibiting companies have a choice of selecting a package shell scheme stand or selecting a space only stand. The stand sizes start at 3m x 3m (9 sqm), and additional blocks can be booked in this size to make larger stands. 

Please note exhibiting companies whose billing address is in the UK will be charged UK standard VAT, customers outside the UK will not be charged tax.

If you are an ICMA Member at the time of submitting your booking, you will qualify for a discount of £25.00 per sqm.

There will be a 30% deposit due 30 days from the booking being made. For all bookings made before February 2026, the final balance will be due on the 31 March 2026. Any bookings made from March 2026, the full balance will be due 30 days from the booking being made.

Exhibitor Tickets

It is a requirement that all exhibitor stand personnel register to attend IMC21.

Each booking will receive 2 x IMC21 Exhibitor Stand Representative Tickets for every block of 9sqm booked. Once you have received confirmation of your booking, a discount code will be sent for you to use for registering your staff with the discount code. Additional IMC21 Exhibitor Stand Representative Tickets can be purchased for £75+ VAT each. Please note each ticket is per individual and non-transferable, and Exhibitor Stand Representative Tickets will not be available for single days.

What's included with your IMC21 Exhibitor Stand Representative Ticket

• Admittance to the IMC21 exhibition including poster area, company workshops, welcome reception on the Sunday evening. (Please note that if you will be presenting in the main conference or presenting a poster, a full conference pass will be required. Your company full Conference pass(s) can be used for this purpose and can be shared amongst your company representatives.)
• Complimentary tea, coffee and water.
• Access to the meeting app.
• No access to the conference sessions with this ticket.

Floorplan

The IMC21 exhibition will be located in Halls A, B and C in the Exhibition Centre at the ACC in Liverpool, alongside the poster area and catering. 

When submitting your booking preferences, you will be asked to select your exhibition stand preferences (five required). Exhibition stands within a block can be selected individually, or joined together to create a larger stand. If you wish to join blocks of exhibition stands together, please enquire before booking, as we are required to maintain lines of sight and traffic flow.

Each individual stand number on the floorplan is 3m x 3m = 9 sqm. 

Please note that the floorplan will be updated on an ongoing basis as exhibition stands are booked, so it is essential that your preferences are chosen from those available at the time of submitting your request.  

Additional Sponsorship Opportunities

Companies who have booked an exhibition stand at IMC21 will also have the opportunity to build on their presence by choosing additional opportunities to enhance their exposure before and during the event. Opportunities will include branding at the venue, sponsorship of the event lanyards, company workshops, conference app sponsorship, digital marketing, co-sponsor marketing and much more. Further details will be released by the end of September.

Please note that bookings for these additional opportunities will not open until 1400hrs (GMT) on Wednesday 5 November 2025.  A link to the booking form will be sent out on the morning of this date for companies who have booked an exhibition stand.

If you have received confirmation of your stand allocation, your company representative who made the exhibitor stand booking will be able to log back into their account to select additional items on a first-come/first-served basis. 

How to book a stand at IMC21

For information on how to book your exhibition stand at IMC21, please visit the Exhibition Stand Booking Procedure Page.

The link to the booking page will be sent to all the IMC21 exhibition contacts on the days the different windows open, but the links will not be active until 1400hrs (BST) on each of the booking days.

To add additional contacts to future IMC21 exhibition emails, please ask them to complete the form on the register your interest page HERE.

To submit a booking you will need an online RMS account set up in your own name. If you have not already done so, you will need to create an online account to view and submit the sponsorship request form. To do this, go to the RMS Website Login Page and 'Register for a website account'. We recommend setting up your account in advance to avoid any delay as stands will be allocated strictly on a first-come, first-served basis according to the date and time the submission is received.

If you have any questions regarding exhibiting at IMC21 please contact [email protected].

The Royal Microscopical Society (RMS) are the Professional Congress Organisers for IMC21, alongside IFSM, and the Planning Committee.