Trade Show Drapes & Booth Curtains
Trade show drapes are the fastest way to turn bare exhibit-hall floor into a finished booth — a clean back wall for your graphics, side rails that define your space, and a matte backdrop that makes your product the thing people look at. This page covers how exhibit drape is sized, what fabric to choose, what the fire marshal will ask for, and how to build a booth from parts we stock.
Expo Warehouse is the exclusive authorized WENTEX distributor for the USA and Canada. We ship from our Evans, GA warehouse — and because we sell the system rather than renting it, exhibitors and show contractors buy once instead of paying per show.
The standard trade show booth, built from stock
A conventional 10 × 10 booth uses two drape heights: a tall back wall and low side rails.
| Part of the booth | Typical height | What we stock for it |
|---|---|---|
| Back wall | 8 ft | MGS 8' (H) × 11' (W) black pleated — the economical exhibit-hall workhorse |
| Taller back wall | 10–16 ft | Velvet Napoli 10', 12', 14' and 16' × 11' for island booths and premium builds |
| Side rails | 3–4 ft | Velvet Napoli 4' × 11' pleated and 4' × 9' flat, black or white |
| Frame | — | Telescopic uprights, crossbars and base plates |
Note on heights: 8 ft is the standard back-wall height across most exhibit halls, and the industry-standard side rail is 3 ft. We stock 4 ft side-rail panels rather than 3 ft — slightly taller, which many exhibitors prefer for sightline control. If your show's rules specify 3 ft exactly, tell us and we'll source it.
Send us your booth size and we'll spec the full parts list →
What a trade show booth needs
Pipe and drape is modular and tool-free — nothing attaches to the building, and it strikes as fast as it goes up. Four components build any booth:
- Uprights — the vertical poles that set your height. Telescopic models cover roughly 4 ft to 16 ft, so one set handles both back wall and side rails.
- Base plates — weighted steel feet. Match the base to your height; taller walls need heavier feet.
- Crossbars — telescoping horizontal bars that span between uprights and carry the drape, so one bar fits a range of booth widths.
- Drapes — the flame-retardant fabric panels themselves.
Uprights lock to height with a compression brake — a built-in tightening handle. For aisles, doorways, and high-traffic corners, add base weights; to branch corners or rig from truss, see connectors and clamps. Component-by-component detail is in our pipe and drape hardware guide.
How much drape do you need?
Three numbers spec a booth: width, height, and fullness.
- Width — divide your total run into crossbar sections. Uprights = sections + 1, because middle uprights are shared between neighboring sections.
- Height — 8 ft for the back wall, 3–4 ft for side rails, 10–16 ft for island and premium builds.
- Fullness — flat (1.0×) is clean, modern, and economical, and it keeps printed graphics readable. Pleated (1.5–2×) is fuller and more formal. Multiply section width by the fullness factor to get drape width.
Our free Pipe & Drape Calculator turns booth dimensions into a parts list, and the sizing & buying guide walks through the math with reference tables.
Choosing your booth drape fabric
- MGS — a lighter, more economical stage drape and the rental-house standard for booth walls and dividers. This is the sensible default for exhibit-hall back walls and aisle dividers, especially across a fleet of booths.
- Velvet Napoli — premium 260 g/m² polyester velvet (with a heavy 480 g/m² option), deep and rich where the booth is the brand statement. Available in eight colors including black and white.
- Duvetyne — brushed-cotton matte masking fabric for killing reflections, blacking out storage areas, and masking AV racks behind the booth.
Browse everything on the drapes & curtains page. Colors beyond black and white — greys, royal and dark blue, red, burgundy — are available in the Velvet Napoli line; availability varies by height, so ask us if you need a specific color-and-height combination.
Fire certification — what the show and the fire marshal require
Exhibit halls and authorities having jurisdiction require flame-retardant drape, and show management frequently asks for documentation at move-in. Our drape fabrics are independently certified to NFPA 701 (USA) and CAN/ULC-S109 (Canada), and a Certificate of Flame Resistance is available on request for your booth paperwork.
Confirm your specific show's requirements before you ship — exhibitor kits sometimes specify a particular standard or wording.
Buy your booth drape instead of renting it every show
Most exhibitors rent drape from the show's general contractor, one show at a time. If you exhibit more than a couple of times a year, owning the system usually costs less — and it means your booth looks the same at every show, in your colors, with no availability gaps or last-minute substitutions.
The comparison is simple: per-show rental cost × shows per year versus a one-time purchase. Our rent vs. buy guide works through it honestly, including when renting genuinely is the better call.
Exhibit houses, show contractors, and multi-booth orders
Outfitting a fleet of booths, a full exhibit hall, or a rental inventory is a different conversation from a single backdrop. As the exclusive authorized WENTEX distributor for the USA and Canada, we supply exhibit houses, general contractors, AV companies, and venues direct — with bulk and dealer pricing, and quote-ready documentation for procurement.
See pipe and drape wholesale for the direct-from-distributor path, or request a quote with your quantities.
Complete booth kits
If you want a known-good, travel-ready setup rather than a parts list, our pipe and drape kits bundle uprights, bases, crossbars, and drape sized to work together and ship on a steel rolling trolley. For broadcast and camera-surround backdrops, see the FOH kits. Kit availability changes — if the configuration you want isn't showing as available, request a quote and we'll confirm lead time or build the equivalent from stocked components.
Setting up the booth itself? Gaffer, spike, and tunnel tape handles cable runs and floor marking.
Frequently asked questions
What size drapes do I need for a 10 × 10 trade show booth?
A standard 10 × 10 booth uses an 8 ft back wall across the 10 ft rear span, plus low side rails down each side. Because crossbars and uprights telescope, an 11 ft wide drape panel covers a 10 ft span comfortably. Uprights = sections + 1, so a simple three-sided booth needs four uprights and bases.
What is the standard trade show booth drape height?
8 ft is the standard back-wall height in most exhibit halls, and 3 ft is the standard side-rail height. Island and premium booths go taller — 10, 12, 14, or 16 ft. Always check your show's exhibitor kit, since height rules vary by hall and booth type.
Do trade show drapes need to be fire rated?
Yes. Exhibit halls and authorities having jurisdiction require flame-retardant drape, and show management often asks for documentation at move-in. Our drape is independently certified to NFPA 701 (USA) and CAN/ULC-S109 (Canada), and we provide a Certificate of Flame Resistance on request.
What is the difference between MGS and Velvet Napoli for booth drape?
MGS is a lighter, more economical stage drape and the rental-house standard for booth walls and dividers — the sensible default for exhibit halls, especially across multiple booths. Velvet Napoli is premium 260 g/m² polyester velvet (with a heavy 480 g/m² option) for booths where the drape is part of the brand statement.
Can I buy trade show drapes instead of renting from the show contractor?
Yes. We sell pipe and drape rather than renting it. If you exhibit more than a couple of times a year, owning usually costs less than per-show rental, and your booth looks identical at every show. For a single one-off event, renting locally may still be the better call.
Do you supply drapes for multiple booths or exhibit houses?
Yes. We supply exhibit houses, general contractors, AV companies, and venues direct as the exclusive authorized WENTEX distributor for the USA and Canada, with bulk and dealer pricing and quote-ready documentation for procurement.
What colors do trade show drapes come in?
Black is the exhibit-hall standard and white is the most common alternative. The Velvet Napoli line is available in eight colors, including light and dark grey, royal and dark blue, red, and burgundy. Availability varies by height and color, so ask us for a specific combination.
Spec your booth
Send us your booth dimensions, back-wall height, drape color, and how many booths you're outfitting, and we'll spec the exact uprights, bases, crossbars, and drape — with pricing and lead time. Request a quote or call (877) 371-3847, Mon–Fri 9–5 ET.
