CTCO · 2027

Agoris analysis · updated September 2026

Key takeaways

• CTCO is France's gathering for promotional products and textiles, held early in the year and strictly reserved for resellers, distributors and marking and printing professionals.
• Next edition: the 19th CTCO, from 2 to 4 February 2027 at Eurexpo Lyon, held alongside C!Print, the printing and visual communication trade show run by the same organiser.
• Organiser: Infopro Digital Trade Shows (formerly 656 Éditions), part of the Infopro Digital group.
• 2026 audience (organiser's review): 10,291 visitors, 289 exhibitors including 56 newcomers, 37 countries represented, 9% of visitors from abroad.
• Highlights: the Les Must de CTCO competition, the Print Lab (live personalisation area), and a conference programme that has included, since 2024, an international session in English.
• Controlled professional access: the badge is free on pre-registration, but every request is subject to an activity check (supplier invoices, membership of a professional organisation).

Who exhibits

Typical profile

The offer covers the full chain of promotional product communication: suppliers and manufacturers of promotional items, promotional textile and workwear brands, importers and wholesalers, business gift publishers, and suppliers of marking solutions (screen printing, embroidery, transfer, digital printing). On the visitor side: resellers and distributors of promotional products, communication agencies, printers and markers looking to expand their service catalogue.

Notable exhibitors

The official list is published by the organiser on the trade show's exhibitor page. The 2026 edition brought together 289 exhibitors, including 56 newcomers, from 37 countries. The trade show also hosts collective presentations, such as the Specialists' "Village" in 2026 (source: EPPI, February 2026).

Quality of the audience

The 2026 edition welcomed 10,291 visitors, 9% of whom were from abroad. C!Mag notes an 11% rise in resellers and communication agencies, the trade show's two strategic target audiences (source: C!Mag, February 2026). The screening at the entrance partly explains this density: access is refused to minors, every badge is validated manually, and a documentary check (two invoices from promotional products or textile suppliers, or invoices for marking workshop equipment and consumables) may be required.

Events & community

Conference programme

The content is built around conferences, workshops and round tables covering screen printing, embroidery, e-business, market trends and products. The 2026 edition brought together 20 experts for 9 conferences and round tables. Since 2024, an international conference in English has brought together players from several continents, with translation headsets available.

The Print Lab completes this offering: a live demonstration area for personalisation and marking techniques, where visitors leave with their own personalised product. A Workwear corner showcases the techniques applicable to technical fabrics.

The trade show also serves as a platform for the first study on the size of the French promotional products market, co-produced by CTCO, 2FPCO (now L'Objet Média) and European Sourcing using the PPAI methodology, and presented at the 2025 edition. It puts the market at 2.1 billion euros in 2023 sales, 19.3% of which were made online (source: C!Mag). France was chosen as the pilot country for a Europe-wide data harmonisation effort.

Awards and accolades

The Les Must de CTCO competition brings together the market's flagship products in a dedicated space: 90 new products were showcased there in 2026. The format was redesigned with L'Objet Média, the Fédération de la Communication par l'Objet: four categories, a clear distinction between promotional items and promotional textiles, and two categories dedicated to eco-responsible products. Candidates in the Impact categories complete a questionnaire on their CSR commitments and practices, and the products are then analysed and validated by a L'Objet Média committee. Visitors then vote for their four favourite products.

The 2026 award ceremony was held during the Soirée de l'Objet Média. Winners: Actimat, for its Tapis coco Sunny, in the Textile Innovant category; Boomerang Citizen Green, for its Trousse FISEL, in the Objet Impact category; Idées Nature, for its Fleur de thé, in the Objet Innovant category; Studio by Hindbag, for its Timéo Child Fanny Pack, in the Textile Impact category.

Community & networks

CTCO draws on a dense network of federations and institutions: L'Objet Média (formerly 2FPCO) on the French side, European Sourcing at European level, the CCI Lyon Métropole and Only Lyon locally, and several foreign associations from the promotional sector (PPAI in the United States, FYVAR and AIMFAP in Spain, the Dutch industry association).

On the media side, the trade show is covered by C!Mag, a magazine published by the same group, and by the international trade press (EPPI in Germany, ASI and PPAI Media in the United States). On social media, the trade show had around 3,900 LinkedIn followers, 2,508 Facebook fans and 2,391 Instagram followers in 2026.

On site: what you need to know

For access, parking and accommodation, see the venue page: Eurexpo Lyon (Boulevard de l'Europe, 69680 Chassieu; tram T3 from Lyon Part-Dieu then shuttle 100 "Direct Eurexpo", around 30 minutes; RhôneExpress from Lyon Saint-Exupéry airport then shuttle, around 30 minutes; immediate proximity to the A43 and A46 motorways).

Specific to the trade show: CTCO occupies halls 2 and 3, with a dedicated Confluence entrance. 2027 edition opening hours: Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 February from 9.30am to 6pm, Thursday 4 February from 9.30am to 4.30pm. The parking package shared by the C!Print and CTCO trade shows costs 17 € (all taxes included) per day (P0 and P11 car parks recommended, electric vehicle charging points at P3). A free, commission-free carpooling solution, COVIEVENT by Mobicoop, is reserved for visitors and exhibitors. The badge is obtained through free online pre-registration, with manual validation within 48 to 72 hours; access is forbidden to minors, pushchairs and animals. A cloakroom is available at the entrance.

How much it costs to exhibit

Preparing your visit

For the exhibitor

• Go through the organiser's online quote request: no public pricing schedule is released, the exhibitor pack is sent on request.
• Plan ahead for the Must de CTCO application: for the Impact categories, a questionnaire on CSR commitments and practices must be completed, and the product is then validated by a L'Objet Média committee.
• Plan a demonstration if the offer relates to marking: the Print Lab is the point of passage for visitors comparing personalisation techniques.
• Stay alert to commercial solicitations: the organiser publishes a dedicated warning about fraudulent approaches targeting exhibitors (fake directories, fake service providers).

For the decision-making visitor

• Get your badge validated in advance: pre-registration is free, but every request is checked and validation takes 48 to 72 hours.
• Treat CTCO and C!Print as a single trip: the two trade shows are held on the same dates in neighbouring halls at Eurexpo, the latter covering printing, visual communication and personalisation.
• Use the Must area as a shortcut: it brought together 90 new products in 2026, making it possible to scan the trends before targeting specific stands.
• Set aside two days if the goal is sourcing: with 289 exhibitors from 37 countries in 2026, a one-day visit forces trade-offs.

Policy & CSR initiatives

Infopro Digital Trade Shows publishes an "Our CSR approach" page described as a "work in progress" strategy, under way since 2020 and shared across its trade shows. The documented measures relate first to the stands and activity areas: stricter environmental criteria in the choice of suppliers (materials, sustainable signage, eco-design, waste management, stand lifespan), stands shared between several trade shows in the group with a target of at least 10 rotations, 100% LED lighting, heating, ventilation and air conditioning switched off during build-up and breakdown days, and the removal of carpet from the aisles.

At breakdown, signage and activity areas have been shared with CAGIBIG since 2021, signage mandrels are recovered by supplier OPTIMA, and selective sorting is organised across four collected waste streams (DIB, cardboard, plastic film, glass). On the catering side, the commitments are carried by partners DUVAL Paris (biowaste sorting with Moulinot, oil collection by Quatra, glass deposit and recycling) and LE COUSU (local sourcing, waste reduction, surplus recovery).

The trade show itself does not hold its own ISO 20121 certification. The venue, however, does: Eurexpo Lyon is certified ISO 20121 along with GL events' other Lyon sites, and its solar panels cover nearly 13 hectares of car parks, making it the largest solar farm in the Lyon Métropole area.

Lastly, sustainability is an editorial focus the trade show openly embraces: two of the four Must categories are reserved for eco-responsible products, with a mandatory CSR questionnaire and validation by a professional committee. The market study presented at CTCO puts the weight of responsible, recycled, bio-based or locally sourced products at 703.4 million euros, or 33.6% of the sector's revenue (source: C!Mag).

How the trade show has evolved

No edition was held in 2021: the 14th was postponed from February to March 2022 because of the health context.

Trajectory analysis

CTCO has moved for several years within a narrow band, between 10,000 and 11,500 visitors, with a record set in 2024 at 11,455 visitors. The 2026 edition marks a slight dip, to 10,291 visitors against 11,166 in 2025, without calling into question the trade show's foundations: the number of exhibitors remains close to 300 and international depth is growing, with 37 countries represented and 9% of visitors from abroad. The only departure from the early-February rhythm, the 2022 edition pushed back to March, is a direct legacy of the health-related postponements.

The underlying trajectory is that of a national trade show that has become a European platform: an international conference in English since 2024, partnerships with the Spanish, Dutch and American federations, and co-production with the PPAI of a harmonised market study for which France is the pilot country. The permanent co-location with C!Print, which brings the printing and personalisation ecosystem into the neighbouring halls, remains the main audience driver and the factor that sets CTCO apart from other European promotional products events.

Unless otherwise stated, all factual data in this listing comes from the organiser's official website (salon-ctco.com).