Naidex 2021 - Our Highlights
After being postponed numerous times due to Covid, September 2021 saw the long-awaited return of Naidex - And we couldn’t wait to get stuck in!
What is Naidex?
With secure safety measures in place, we felt confident enough to attend our first trade show in almost two years - Naidex. For those of you who don’t know what that is, it’s an exhibition held annually at the NEC in Birmingham, totally dedicated to all things disability. The event spans over two jam-packed days, with:
Over 200 exhibitors - Ranging from mobility aids and accessible travel operators, to ground-breaking innovations.
Over 100 live seminars - Inspirational and informative talks from a variety of people, like sportsmen and women, entrepreneurs, and relationship experts.
Interactivity - Try your hand at a huge number of things in the inclusive sports arena, test something out on the mobility test track, or “try before you buy” from some of the exhibitors.
There really is so much to see and do, as far as we’re concerned, it’s THE place to go if you have or know somebody who has a disability.
The Highlights-
Wandering around the huge hall, we didn’t know where to start! Lining the walkways sat exhibitor after exhibitor, proudly waiting to tell us all about their product or service. Naturally, we were drawn to anything and everything that makes adventures more accessible, so here are just a few of the companies who stood out to us.
Baldertech Ltd
One of the first companies we came across was a very familiar one - Baldertech. They manufacture and maintain power chairs, and I’ve been using one as my legs for over a decade now! Speaking from experience, they are fantastic chairs. As you may have seen, there’s not many places it won’t take me, and it has been incredibly reliable in doing so, only having a couple of faults since getting it around 12 years ago. As much as I love it (I’m not ready to upgrade yet!), it was great to see the latest range at the show - The Balder Finesse. These chairs look as sleek as ever, with additional modern technology such as a touch screen controller with bluetooth and mouse control, usb socket and Gyro drive technology that keeps driving stable when going along uneven ground.
The chairs themselves are great, but for us, it’s the team behind them that put Baldertech above the rest. They know their chairs inside out and are always on hand to help on the rare occasion that things go wrong. My wheelchair is extremely important to my health and wellbeing, and thankfully, in the 12 years I’ve owned it, I haven’t been without it fully functioning for more than 24 hours. Jason, pictured above, even managed to talk Stephen through a temporary fix when it malfunctioned on our Hebridean road trip!
Lewis Reed Group
Next to catch our eye was another familiar company - Lewis Reed Group. They are a wheelchair accessible vehicle provider based up in Wirral, but they provide vehicles to people all over the country. Loving our VW Transporter that was originally modified by them, we were really excited to see what else they had on their stand - and it didn’t disappoint!
Amongst the array of shiny vehicles, we spotted a beautiful, brand new, accessible Mercedes Benz V-Class in Obsidian Black. Practically drooling at the sight of it, the lovely sales assistant took us inside for a closer look. Although they can do a whole host of modifications, this one had virtually the same as our current car - a rear entry lift and an up-front wheelchair position - which naturally made us love it even more.
Inside, it felt incredibly luxurious, with cream leather seats and dashboard full of LED’s, but one of my favourite features was the panoramic sliding sunroof that flooded the whole vehicle with light.
It just goes to show that wheelchair accessible vehicles can be practical AND beautiful!
eFOLDi
This family-owned business specialise in creating small, lightweight electric scooters and wheelchairs that, you might have guessed, fold up. They were originally invented by a man called Jianmin Wang, who, after an accident that left him disabled, realised that there was nothing suitable on the market, so he decided to design his own chair. Wanting to share his invention with the world, his daughter Sumi helped to turn the eFOLDi into a purchasable product, which then went on to win the British Invention Of The Year award in 2016 and has been personally endorsed by none other than Sir Richard Branson.
The story alone is inspiring, but we thought the scooters and wheelchairs themselves looked like a great piece of kit. As Sumi was demonstrating, it occurred to us that they would be ideal for caravanners and motorhomers with mobility problems, because of the compact and lightweight nature of them! Weighing as little as 15kg and folding down to the size of a small suitcase, they look as though they would be perfect to take out on trips, where space and weight is of the essence.
eFOLDi have been kind enough to give our readers a discount, so if you’re interested in getting one, use the link below for £100 off!
TourismForAll are a travel agency based in Portugal, specialising in accessible travel within their beautiful country. Visiting another country can be a daunting prospect, especially when you’re disabled, but they can take the pressure and worries away by helping you plan your trip. They offer a whole host of services, from booking accommodation and transport, to organising excursions and creating itineraries - They can even arrange for personal assistants to help you out with your care if needed.
We love that they can help as much or as little as needed, whether thats just finding you a suitable hotel or arranging your trip from start to finish! Stephen and I are keen to explore more of Europe over the coming years, so it’s useful to know that there is a resource out there for finding accessible things to do when (not if!) we make it over to Portugal.
Coachbuilt
We couldn't visit Naidex and not say hello to the lovely people at Coachbuilt. They are an accessible caravan, motorhome and day-van manufacturer who create the most beautiful leisure vehicles to suit people with disabilities - So they’re right up our street! They understand that everyones needs are different, so they bespoke modify vehicles to suit each individual customer, and are able to do a huge variety of adaptions, from hydraulic entry lifts and ceiling-track hoists, to profiling beds and wet rooms.
They always have something exciting on display, but we were thrilled to see that this time they had both an accessible caravan and motorhome! The caravan was a gorgeous little 2-berth Swift Challenger with a clever foldable sofa that created a great little turning circle in the lounge, and the motorhome was a slightly larger Swift Escape. It was designed for a couple, with an ‘L’ shaped lounge that converted into a double bed - and you’d never know from looking at it, that one half of it had actually been made into a profiling bed with electrically adjustable head and foot ends. Another feature that we thought was really clever was the turntable ceiling track hoist. This went all the way from the cabin at the front, to the bed at the back, and had a turntable in the middle so the hoist can divert off to the wash room when needed.
(We have a full video tour of a Coachbuilt adapted caravan and motorhome coming soon, so be sure to sign up to our mailing list to be amongst the first to see it!)
TerrainHopper
With a tagline of “Created for adventure” and an assortment of bright colours, it’s easy to see why TerrainHopper caught our eye! These powerful off-road wheelchairs are designed to take you to the most extreme and exciting places, through deep mud, undergrowth, sand, snow, and over rocks and steep hills.
Speaking to the rep, we discovered that there are currently 3 different models available, from the smallest Overlander Mini, to the largest Overlander 4ZX, and they offer bespoke builds too - all with the option of a joystick or manual controls. The independent suspension system is designed to give a comfortable ride over even the rockiest ground, while the chunky tyres avoid you getting stuck. She told us that numerous Terrain Hopper’s have climbed Mount Snowdon, which is somewhere we are keen to visit!
Calvert Trust
With a passion for adventure almost as strong as ours, the Calvert Trust run a number of activity centres across the UK, specifically designed for people with disabilities. They offer the chance to try a huge variety of activities that would otherwise be inaccessible, such as climbing, archery, canoeing, horse riding, zip-lining and so much more! Exmoor National Park is home to one of their locations, where their 5-star accommodation sits overlooking the tranquil Wistlandpound Reservoir. This location offers all-inclusive breaks to disabled people of all ages, which covers the accommodation, activities, food and use of facilities such as the indoor swimming pool.
Speaking to one of the enthusiastic staff members, we got an idea of the importance of what the Calvert Trust do. They don’t just give people equal opportunities, they empower people to believe in themselves- And that’s priceless!
BrightSign
Last, but definitely not least, are a new business called BrightSign. They’re not exactly relevant to us and what we do, but we were so amazed by their product that we just HAD to share it with you. Hadeel and Ed, the founders of BrightSign, have designed a wearable smart glove that can detect any sign language and translate it into any spoken language! I know, it sounds like something you’d see in a futuristic movie, but once you see it in action you will be just as astounded as we were!
As if it wasn’t enough for it to detect any sign language, you can teach it your own gestures too. This glove literally gives people with hearing and speaking difficulties a voice, and allows them to communicate in a way they otherwise wouldn’t be able to, and with people they wouldn’t usually be able to communicate with. They won the Best Innovation award during the Naidex show, and we think it was very well deserved!
We had a fantastic time during our two days at Naidex, and these were just a few of our many highlights. We were blown away by the ingenuity of some of the creations we saw, and the passion and enthusiasm of everyone there really stood out. Whether they were a wheelchair manufacturer or tour operator, everyone there had the same goal - To make the world a more accessible place!
Naidex will next be held 6th-7th of July 2022. Entry is free, so be sure to register for tickets if you’re interested in attending.
*Please note: There may be affiliate links within this article. By purchasing an eFOLDi power chair or scooter your £100 discount will be automatically applied, and we will get a few pennies towards our next trip!