More than 200 firms which have supplied the Royal Family in the last five years are gathering at Buckingham Palace for a four-day festival to mark the 60th anniversary of the Queen's coronation.
Members of the public paid up to £90 to attend the event. 7,000 people are expected to fill the palace's gardens.
Organisers said exhibiting businesses will promote 'the very best of UK PLC'.
The Queen, Prince Charles and other royals are due to attend a preview of the event later on Thursday.
The firms involved are all royal warrant holders, so-called because the title allows them to display a royal coat of arms on their goods.
The organisers are calling it a Coronation Festival. Others have suggested it's a trade fair.
Those involved include luxury car companies; the bed manufacturer which once supplied mattresses to Winston Churchill; and the firm which made hunting whips for George the Third.
The decision to stage such an event in the Queen's backyard, and to charge the public rather than to let them in for free, has raised some eyebrows.
But palace officials argue that at a time of austerity, this is an opportunity for the royals to celebrate and promote aspects of British industry.
Warrants are issued to companies which have provided goods or services to the households of the Queen, Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh or Charles the Prince of Wales.
Among the 800 warrant holders are Bentley Motors, GlaxoSmithKline and Jaguar Land Rover - all of which are sponsoring the event.
Some newspapers labelled it a 'trade fair' when the plans were announced last November.
Five thousand people are expected to attend a gala in the palace gardens on Thursday evening which will feature performances from Katherine Jenkins, Russell Watson and band The Feeling, as well as the National Youth Orchestra and English National Ballet.
Tickets for the concert cost £90, and for the daytime exhibitions £30.
Buckingham Palace said the festival will celebrate 'innovation, excellence and industry'.
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