FAQs

What is Visual Architects best known for?

We are best known for designing, manufacturing, renting and installing immersive event décor, bespoke props, festival stages and activations, branded environments and hospitality interior design. We combine creative design, in house manufacturing, one of the UK’s largest collections of premium event décor available for hire, and experienced installation teams to deliver projects across the UK and Europe.

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About Visual Architects

Visual Architects design, manufacture, hire and install premium event décor, not only across the UK and Europe, but globally. We’re a full-service creative production house covering event décor hire, prop hire, bespoke fabrication, brand activations, festival production and interior fit outs, taking projects from initial concept through to on-site installation.

Our Head Office and workshop is based in Manchester, UK. We also have a European base in Barcelona, Spain.

Our clients include Jet2, Velo, Boohoo, Superdrug, Smirnoff, PUMA, The Hut Group, Boomtown, Creamfields, KOKO and Ocean Beach Ibiza, among many others, across festivals, corporate events, retail and hospitality.

We have achieved many industry awards in recent years, including the Special Recognition Award at the Pride of Tameside Business Awards (2024), Outstanding Business of the Year at the This Is MCR awards (2024), Best Production Company at the Conference & Awards (2024), the Visitors’ Choice Award at the Event Production Show (2026), Best Bespoke Structure at the Festival Supplier Awards (2026), Production Company of the Year at the Pride of Tameside Business Awards (2025), Creative Agency of the Year at the Conference & Awards (2025), and Best Brand Activation at the Conference & Awards (2022).

Event Décor Hire & Rental

Visual Architects offers one of the UK’s largest collections of premium event décor, themed props, furniture, scenic pieces and immersive installations for hire. Our rental stock includes 74 prefabricated event themes, including Christmas, Halloween, Wild West, Neon Jungle and Masquerade to name but a few, with each featuring entrance archways and tunnels, stage décor, Christmas décor, festival décor, specific themed props and bespoke scenic elements.

Yes. Event décor hire is a core part of our business, alongside our design and build service, so clients can access premium décor without commissioning a bespoke build every time.

Prop hire is available across our full range, from themed pieces to large scale scenic props, and can be combined with our installation team on the day.

Yes, we hold themed décor stock for events of all sizes, from festivals and nightlife through to corporate and seasonal themes.

Yes. Christmas décor is one of our specialisms. We have designed and installed seasonal décor for venues including Casa SEAT Cupra (Barcelona), Jet2 (Leeds) and Convene (London). Builds are designed to be reused, redesigned and reimagined year on year.

Yes, our festival décor and immersive structures are available for hire, as well as the option for bespoke commissions. Our structures and props have been featured at events including Creamfields, Parklife, Kendal Calling, Leeds/Reading, Bludfest, Bloodstock and Boomtown.

Yes, event furniture hire including bars, seating and styling pieces is available as part of our rental stock.

Yes, alongside our stock hire, we can manufacture bespoke props to order, which can go on to join our hire collection after the event should you not wish to purchase.

Renting gives you access to premium décor without the cost or storage of owning it outright.

Hire is generally the more cost-effective option for standard pieces as we already own the items on our shelves and are ready to go! Bespoke manufacture suits projects that need something entirely original, and can be more costly due to having to fabricate from scratch.

Interior Design & Fit Out

Yes. We design and fit out interiors for bars, restaurants and hospitality venues, applying the same immersive design approach we use for events.

Yes, bar and restaurant design and fit out is part of our interior design service, from concept through to fabrication and installation.

Yes, immersive interior design is one of our specialisms, combining scenic fabrication, lighting and technical elements to create fully themed spaces.

Yes, we design and fit out retail interiors, bringing brand storytelling into physical spaces.

Yes, we can design and build immersive visitor attractions and experiences, drawing on the same fabrication and technical capability we use for events.

Yes. Our in-house manufacturing team builds bespoke interior fit outs alongside our event work, covering everything from scenic elements to full room transformations.

Yes, we act as an interior fit out contractor for hospitality, retail and leisure spaces, managing design, manufacture and installation in house.

Event Design & Production

Yes. We offer a complete design and production service: concept development, moodboards and 3D visualisation, in-house fabrication (including CNC and robotic machining and scenic painting), transport, installation, on site project management and de-rig.

We typically scan venues before design begins to create 3D digital maps, so layouts can be planned and visualised in advance. This means fewer surprises onsite and lets clients see exactly what their event will look like before anything is built.

Yes, including AV, projection mapping, LED walls, special effects, lighting & sound design and full technical integration.

Brand Activations & Experiential Marketing

Yes, brand activations are a core element of what we do. We design and build activations including for retail, hospitality, festivals, exhibitions and experiential marketing events, handling everything from the creative concept through to installation.

Yes, we design and build experiential marketing activations for brands, from concept through to on-site delivery.

Both. We can work directly with brands and alongside their existing agencies, either leading the creative or delivering the build for someone else’s design.

Festival Production

Yes. We produce festival stages, immersive areas and site wide theming. Recent examples include Creamfields, Bludfest and Boomtown.

Yes, immersive area design is a core part of our festival work, combining scenic build, lighting and props into a single themed space.

Yes, festival décor is available both as bespoke build and from our hire stock.

Yes, custom stage sets are designed and manufactured in house, from initial concept through to on-site installation.

Corporate Events

Yes, we design and build staging, décor and branded environments for conferences.

Yes, exhibition stand design and build is part of our corporate events service.

Yes, we design and produce product launch events, combining set build, décor and technical production.

Manufacturing & Fabrication

Yes. All our fabrication, including CNC and robotic machining and scenic painting, is carried out in house at our Manchester workshop.

Our main fabrication workshop is in Manchester, UK, alongside our European base in Barcelona, Spain.

Yes, CNC and robotic machining are part of our in-house fabrication capability, used for precision scenic and prop work.

Yes, scenic fabrication including scenic painting is a core part of our manufacturing service.

Yes, bespoke props are designed and manufactured in house, to order.

Yes, large scale structures, including the bespoke installation recognised at the Festival Supplier Awards, are designed and built in-house.

We work with timber, foam, polystyrene, GRP and steel.

Sustainability

Sustainability is built into how we design, not bolted on afterwards. We think modular and reusable from the design stage, deciding how a piece will be assembled and whether sections can be added or removed before we ever start building. That means builds get a next life instead of going to landfill after derig: our Christmas installations for Casa SEAT Cupra in Barcelona have been redesigned and reused year on year, and structures built for one event have gone on to be repurposed for others.

Renting rather than commissioning a bespoke build every time is also better for budgets and better for the planet. On the fabrication side, we run a poly compactor in-house to recycle polystyrene waste from the build process rather than sending it to landfill. Our founder has spoken publicly on regenerative design thinking in events, including at IMEX Frankfurt.

Yes. Design doesn’t end at derig for us. Builds are designed from the outset to be stored, redesigned and reused, rather than made from scratch every time.

We run a poly compactor in-house to recycle polystyrene offcuts and waste generated during the build process.

Yes, both our hire stock and our modular bespoke builds are designed with reuse in mind, which reduces waste compared to single use décor.

Working Internationally

Yes. We have an office in Barcelona and have delivered projects across Spain and Ibiza, including CASA SEAT in Barcelona and long running work for Ibiza venues. Our team includes native Spanish speakers.

Yes. We deliver projects across Europe from our UK and Barcelona bases, with in-house logistics and installation teams who are experienced in international work.

Our team speaks over 13 native languages across the business, including Spanish, French, German, Portuguese and Greek.

Yes, we deliver projects across the UK and Europe from our Manchester and Barcelona bases.

Yes, beyond the UK and Europe we’ve delivered projects worldwide including the US, Africa and the Middle East.

Locations

Yes, Manchester is home to our headquarters and fabrication workshop.

Yes, we deliver projects in London.

Yes, we deliver projects in Birmingham.

Yes, we’ve delivered long running work for Ibiza venues including Ocean Beach Ibiza.

Yes, Barcelona is home to our European base, and we’ve delivered repeat projects there including the Casa SEAT Cupra Christmas installations.

Logistics & Installation

Yes, transport, onsite installation and project management are all part of our end-to-end service.

Yes, de-rig is part of our standard service, and we can store reusable builds and hire stock between projects rather than making everything from scratch each time.

Yes, onsite project management is included as part of our full design and production service.

Hire vs Bespoke

Prop hire draws on existing stock and suits projects with a shorter timeline or smaller budget, while bespoke props are designed and manufactured from scratch for a specific brief.

A bespoke build makes sense when you need something entirely original that isn’t available from stock, or when a piece needs to be a specific size, shape or brand fit.

Hire suits projects that can work with existing premium stock, while full design and build suits projects that need a bespoke concept from the ground up. Many of our clients combine both.

Process & Practicalities

The earlier the better, especially for summer festival season and December events.

Every project is priced individually. The best thing is to set up a meeting with one of our experienced team members and we’ll run through what you can expect with your budget.

Yes, we carry full public and employer’s liability insurance and manage health and safety across design, build and installation.

Yes, we regularly work alongside client agencies, event producers and venue teams, either leading the creative or delivering the build for someone else’s design.