If customers complained about the odor of your business colleagues, how would you address it professionally?

I run a trade show and it is one of the exhibitors. He wears the same clothes for all 4 days of the show and smells really, really awful. Actually about 3 of them smell awful. We only do a show there twice a year, but this has been going on for years. I think it's time to address it, but I don't know how. Should I bring a bag of deodorant and put it behind their booth at the next show? Or should I write them a letter detailing the complaint? I just don't know what to do. It's a unique situation.

I run a trade show and it is one of the exhibitors. He wears the same clothes for all 4 days of the show and smells really, really awful. Actually about 3 of them smell awful. We only do a show there twice a year, but this has been going on for years. I think it's time to address it, but I don't know how. Should I bring a bag of deodorant and put it behind their booth at the next show? Or should I write them a letter detailing the complaint? I just don't know what to do. It's a unique situation.

**Just to clarify...the smelly people aren't members of my staff...they are paying exhibitors. I can't impose a dress code to a mass of exhibitors. The public attendance and fellow dealers are the ones complaining.

If I were to see these people at a trade show I would wonder who let them in. The answer is you!!! My first question, is do you have standards for vendors at your shows? If you don't write them and include a dress code. One would think that basic hygiene would be a given but in my experience you cant leave anything to chance. Everyone attending your trade shows is a potential exhibitor and you want to put together the best show possible. Dirty exhibitors make your company look bad also.

You are in a sense a partner with this company and for you both to get most out of the trade show, you should inform them immediately of customer complaints.

They definitely need to be told.....whether you do it individually in person, by email or by staff meeting detailing the importance of hygiene at all times, especially when mixing with potential clients/customers and colleagues. It can certainly be done tactfully so that nobody is embarassed or offended.
As far as the trade show....you could always get uniform type shirts with the company logo on them(even a golf shirt style) and get 4 different colours for each day of the trade show. Tell each guy you want navy the 1st day, green the 2nd day, red the 3rd day and white the last day (or whatever colours you choose). At least that way you know the shirts will be clean.

I think a well thought out 'convincing' letter might be better than the bag of deordorant. In the letter you could include the reasons you think it is 'important' not to offend by your 'scent'. :) This is how I'd do it, if it was really as offensive, as you described. Most people these days wear deodorant when they are in public, so it is odd that they haven't thought of it. You might ask yourself why that is...so you can be sensitive to this in your letter. Sola