Dentistry Show Birmingham 2026 - thank you for being part of it

We've finally had a chance to sit down, catch our breath and reflect on what was a fantastic couple of days at Dentistry Show Birmingham 2026. Since then, we've been following up on conversations, carrying out audits and speaking with practice owners about the challenges and opportunities we discussed on the stand. Our feet have barely touched the floor - but we wouldn't have it any other way.

If you visited our stand, attended our speaker session, stopped for a chat, shared an idea, picked up a brochure or simply said hello, we'd like to say a huge thank you. Because for us, the show wasn't really about marketing, SEO or technology. It was about people.

Of course, we spent plenty of time talking AI, SEO, local visibility and the future of dental marketing. What was interesting, though, was where those conversations often ended up. A chat about SEO would quickly become a conversation about patient trust. A question about AI would lead to a deeper discussion about how patients make decisions, what they're looking for when choosing a dentist, and how practices can communicate their expertise more effectively.

Very few people were asking how to "game Google" or chase shortcuts. Instead, they wanted to talk about how patients research treatments, how trust is built online, and how they can better showcase the expertise they already have.

A theme that surfaced repeatedly was that many practice owners weren't necessarily unhappy with their marketing. They simply wanted more visibility, better understanding and greater confidence in what was happening behind the scenes and how it connected back to their wider business goals.

Conversations that stuck with us

A big highlight of our show experience was our speaker session with Feel Good Dental’s Dr. Nirmalan (Niz) Patkunan, sharing how practices can leverage specialist expertise to strengthen their visibility online. 

The response blew us away, but what we enjoyed most were the chats that followed. The session opened the door to discussions around authority, trust, patient education and how practices can share what makes them different in a way that genuinely helps patients.

We lost count of the number of chats that touched on AI search and changing patient behaviour. 

Not because people were worried about it, quite the opposite. 

In fact, most practice owners seemed genuinely curious. They wanted to understand what was changing, what wasn't, and how they could adapt without losing sight of what makes their practice unique.

Brilliant businesses and the people behind them

One of the real joys of Dentistry Show Birmingham is catching up with the businesses doing great things across the industry. From clinicians and practice owners to suppliers and innovators supporting them behind the scenes, there's always something to learn.

It was a pleasure catching up with familiar faces including the wonderful Punita from Foxley Lane Dental, as well as meeting and reconnecting with practice owners from across the UK, all facing different challenges - but united by the same desire to build thriving practices and deliver outstanding patient care. Listening to Reena Wadia being interviewed post lecture about prevention and patient education was a great reminder that great dentistry has always been about helping patients understand and improve their long-term oral health.

We were also lucky to be surrounded by some fantastic neighbours throughout the event, all doing incredible things in their field. Fyous were behind us showcasing some genuinely innovative orthodontic technology, while DENTSTOCK and founder Rasnaam Singh Tiwana were brilliant neighbours across the aisle - and a real pleasure to spend time with.

Bryant Dental was impossible to miss. From the stand itself to the products on display, Connor Bryant and the team created one of the standout experiences of the show, and generated a huge amount of interest throughout the weekend. The team at Dentally also showcased a stand that was beautifully executed, and reflected the clean, intuitive experience they're known for. PÄRLA's stand was another standout for us (though we’re still slightly disappointed we never managed to get hold of one of their super cute caps or water bottles!)

We also loved getting to know Loven and the team at Chairsyde. They're such an approachable, generous bunch who were great fun to spend time with, doing some really interesting things around patient communication and understanding, with such a beautifully designed, welcoming stand.

We were also gutted we never got to catch Adrian Dray in the Leaders’ Lounge with VoiceStack. We’ve long admired Adrian's thought leadership around behavioural science, patient communication and patient decision-making - topics that feel increasingly relevant as dentistry continues to evolve. Hoping to catch-up at a future event soon!

More than a trade show

On stand, we spent a lot of time running audits for practices who dropped by. What often started as a quick look under the bonnet turned into much bigger discussions about visibility, growth and the challenges practice owners are navigating right now.

Those discussions gave us plenty to think about, and we've actually pulled together a separate article exploring some of the biggest marketing, AI and patient behaviour trends that emerged from the show. If that’s something you’d like to check out, you can find it here.

More than anything, it reinforced the value of simply being in the room.

There's been a lot of discussion over the past few years about whether industry events are truly "back". From our perspective, the Dentistry Show Birmingham 2026 certainly felt busy, energetic and optimistic.

The value of face-to-face interaction is hard to replicate. In the space of two days, you can learn more about the challenges, opportunities and ambitions of the industry than you sometimes can in months of Zoom calls.

While Transcend’s Ali spent much of the show on the stand and in speaker sessions, Steve spent a lot of his time walking the halls, introducing himself to exhibitors, and starting conversations around future partnerships and collaborations. What struck us most was how open people were. Practice owners, consultants, software providers, suppliers and clinicians were all willing to share ideas, experiences and lessons learned. There was a genuine sense of collaboration running through the event - and that's something we hope never changes.

Thank you

Events like this don't happen without a huge amount of hard work from those behind the scenes. A huge thank you to Charlie Summerly for all his support around our speaker session, and to Hollie and the wider CloserStill Media team for creating such a fantastic event and making everyone feel so well looked after.

We'd also like to thank Joe, Emily and the team at 19-ninety for helping bring our stand to life. They were an absolute pleasure to work with and played a huge part in helping everything come together.

For us personally, the show also felt like an important milestone. Before Transcend Dental became a dedicated dental growth agency, we spent years working behind the scenes on award-winning dental and orthodontic projects. Being at Dentistry Show Birmingham with our own stand, our own speaker session and a growing network of our own clients, partners and collaborators felt pretty special.
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Most of all, we came away feeling genuinely grateful. Grateful for the connections, the ideas and the generosity people showed in sharing their experiences with us.

So, if you were part of our Dentistry Show Birmingham experience this year, thank you. We loved every minute of it and we're already looking forward to next year.