After months of preparation, planning, product selection and booth design, Automechanika Frankfurt 2026 is officially over and what a week it was.
The build started on the Friday before the show, with our contractors beginning work on what would become our home for the following week. The first member of the Simply Brands team arrived on Sunday to check progress, before the rest of us flew out on Monday morning ready for a very busy afternoon of unpacking, merchandising and putting the finishing touches to the stand.
Naturally, there were also a few essentials that needed sorting before the doors opened: a coffee machine, plenty of Coke and enough Haribo to keep the team going. By Monday evening, Hall 3.1, Stand C63 was ready to go.
Well, almost.
A box of FRSH Scents samples that was supposed to arrive on Monday was still nowhere to be seen. We were assured it was on its way.
And Then the Doors Opened
Tuesday morning started relatively calmly. That lasted about five minutes.
Once the show got into full swing, the stand quickly filled with customers, new contacts and potential partners. We had expected a busy week, but the volume of enquiries and conversations on both Tuesday and Wednesday went beyond expectations, with the team often moving straight from one meeting into the next.
It was great to catch up with existing customers face-to-face while also meeting businesses discovering Simply Brands for the first time. From retailers and distributors to international buying groups, the conversations covered everything from new product opportunities to widening existing partnerships into additional regions.
There was particularly strong interest around SBxPRO and Fine & Dandy, with Frankfurt marking the first time both ranges had been presented to a wider European audience. Seeing visitors engage with the products, ask questions and discuss opportunities for their own markets was a great way to introduce both brands.
The FRSH samples, meanwhile, still hadn’t arrived.
Plenty to Talk About
Across the stand, visitors could explore a broad mix of Simply Brands products and categories, from automotive accessories, tools and workshop products to cleaning, spray paints and fragrance.
This year was also particularly significant for Carfume, which was presented at Automechanika for the first time as part of the Simply Brands Group following its acquisition by FRSH Scents. Displaying FRSH Scents and Carfume together gave us the opportunity to talk to customers about the combined automotive fragrance offering and the opportunities it creates across both impulse and premium fragrance categories.
By Wednesday, the conversations weren’t limited to the stand either. Our Business Development Manager Sam Robinson swapped talking to customers for talking to the media, sitting down with Phil from Auto Repair Focus to discuss the show, developments across the automotive industry and what has been happening at Simply Brands.
Another box check followed.
Still nothing.
More Than Just the Show Floor
One of the best things about Automechanika is that the conversations rarely stop when the exhibition halls close.
The evenings gave us a chance to spend time together as a team, catch up with customers and continue conversations in a slightly more relaxed setting. There were some excellent team meals along the way, although one objective somehow remained unfulfilled: despite spending almost a week in Germany, a proper German kebab never materialised.
The Irish bar did, however, deliver exactly as expected. As always, it became an unofficial automotive aftermarket meeting point, full of familiar faces from across the industry and providing another opportunity to catch up away from the exhibition halls.
And yes, we were still waiting for the FRSH box.
Finishing on a High
By Thursday and Friday, the week had already delivered a huge number of new contacts, promising leads and discussions around future distribution opportunities. We also had productive conversations with international buying groups about extending some of the business we already do with their members into new regions.
Those conversations are a big part of what makes events like Automechanika so valuable. It’s not always about making one monumental announcement. Sometimes it’s about having hundreds of useful conversations, strengthening existing relationships, meeting the people behind new businesses and finding opportunities that can develop long after everyone has packed up and gone home.
Which brings us neatly to our missing samples.
After spending almost the entire show waiting for them, the FRSH Scents box finally arrived on Saturday afternoon.
Just in time for the show to finish.
Until Next Time, Frankfurt
Looking back, Automechanika Frankfurt 2026 gave us exactly what we went there for: time with existing customers, introductions to potential new partners, valuable market feedback and plenty of new opportunities to follow up.
It was also a chance to spend quality time together as a team, introduce Carfume as part of Simply Brands Group, showcase SBxPRO and Fine & Dandy in Europe, and put the wider Simply Brands portfolio in front of businesses from around the world.
A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by our stand, met the team and took the time to learn more about Simply Brands.
Now comes the follow-up working through the leads, continuing the conversations and exploring where those new connections might take us next.
And for the next Automechanika Frankfurt, we’ll probably send the FRSH samples a little earlier.
