Southwestern Invertebrate Show - Taunton - 23 February 2025

The preparation started approximately a week before the show. We excitedly prepared the list of isopods we intended to take to the show so we could start writing out our tub labels and made a start diligently hand cutting our table stickers. The preparation for a show can be a weeklong event but we enjoy it very much in our spare time.

The location of the Taunton Southwestern Invertebrate Show is a 260-mile journey, one-way, from our home therefore we decided to travel down the day before the show. This meant we were up very early Saturday morning packing our lovely isopods into tubs with fresh moss ready for the long journey and on the road we went.

The car journey was filled with nervous conversation about how the show might go the next day. As a trader there is a bizarre ‘stage fright’ feeling that we get just before a show. The car journey was helped with some well selected road trip tunes and a good podcast. After 4.5 hours driving, we finally arrived at our Premier Inn for the night. On the evening before show day, we met up with some other traders in the hobby such as Rebel Regius & Incredible inverts and other animals for a great catch up before finally retiring to bed for the evening. As suddenly as we fell asleep it was morning which meant, it was show day! 

After filling our bellies with a good old English breakfast, we were on the road again towards the show venue. Once we arrived at the venue the place was already bustling with traders setting up their tables and socialising. There were even a few people queued up ready just to get first dibs at what was on offer at the show. 

Once PostPods were all registered and we found our table the unpacking commenced. Table cloth spread, pods on display and freebie holographic stickers glistening in the light, we were ready for showtime. Before the doors officially opened, we took the opportunity to have a quick wander around the venue to meet the other traders and see what potential purchases caught our eyes. 

Then the floodgates opened….there seemed to be an endless stream of enthusiastic hobbyists filtering through the doorway and eagerly scanning passing trading tables like a tsunamia of humans. We stood behind our table watching the stream of people pass and welcomed everyone who approached our table.  It was fantastic to meet other isopod lovers who shared their experiences of keeping isopods and like a Pokédex, volunteered details of their own collections. This is our favourite part, to meet and greet everyone and share our own love of isopods. 

A few hours after opening there were still people coming into the show hall. As we glanced around and took in the mosaic sea of people interweaved between the trading tables right across the show hall, a thought came to our minds, for a niche hobby there is certainly a a lot of us and how great it is for us to have the opportunity to come together. 

At Invertebrate shows we aim to showcase our surplus isopod stock with very competitive show prices that can be heavily discounted from our website price. Our star performers of the day were of course the rubber ducky isopods which we had at £40,00 for a 5+1 count! An absolute steal on the day! Of course, these did not last long and we urge anyone visiting us at a show to grab any high-end isopods on the day whilst they last to save being disappointed later in the day. 

As the day grew late into the afternoon, the show hall slowly cleared which gave us another opportunity to have a wander around the hall ourselves. We bought an axolotl plush from Rebel Regius, some isopods from J&W Inverts and collected our Balfouri spiders from Ling. Our trading neighbours were amazing, Misfits Plants and Unseen Universe, we had some great conversations and laughs throughout the day which made the day standing in one spot with achy feet and backs a lot more bearable. 

By 4pm it was time to pack up. We had a fantastic day and there were certainly not as much isopods for us to take back home which was incredible to see. Once we were all packed up it was time to say goodbye to our fellow traders and friends and get back on the road for a long drive home. 

If you like isopods or just love invertebrates on the whole, check out the next show in Barnsley on 23 March 2025 brought to you by the Northern Invertebrate Show.