ASSOCIATION NEWS

With the end of the year being almost upon us, we are already looking toward the new school year and all that encompasses, so we are running the BTS feature in this edition.

As this year ends, we look toward planning for the next year, so planners and diaries are in, which dovetails nicely with “Back to School”, for what is school without a diary? That said, this year isn’t quite done yet and we also need to look toward the highlight of the year, Christmas or at least the festive season.

We look at arts and crafts for this period as many with children are usually desperate by the second day in keeping the children entertained or occupied. These crafty ideas should keep children occupied without the need for an electronic device, however, there are millions of ideas – far too may for us to publish – on various sites from Pinterest and Instagram to YouTube and many more on Google too. Giving children the opportunity to create and make decorations or cards for the festive season is something that most children will enjoy, gosh, even adults enjoy creating and crafting.

Roll up your sleeves and get busy making memories with your child or children, create everything from wrapping paper and gift boxes to cards and decorations. Some may even become keepsakes and traditions may be born.

Stay safe, enjoy the last push toward year end and holidays and stay creative. Bronwen

The Annual General Meeting of the Association was held at Tarsus’ offices recently and followed an informative and thought-provoking presentation by Tarsus CEO, Anton Herbst. Aptly named “Shift Happens” Anton shed some light on where business is going and will be going in the near future. He cautioned business managers and owners to not let their ego’s get in the way of taking their businesses to the next level.

The AGM was chaired by Clive Heydenrych since Hans Servas retired from the Board at the end of June. The chairman’s report highlighted the successful virtual trade show hosted by SHOP-SA in September 2021. The virtual trade show was supported by 13 exhibitors, had 2357 unique visitors and 5487 visits to the various live, static and video exhibits.

A BTS survey was conducted again and the results indicated that there was some recovery in the market for this sector at the start of the school year in 2022. The Association’s finances remained constraint despite several cuts to expenses. The main reason for the critical financial position is that the interest from advertisers had decreased.

The Association took the staff and contractors back after IT Online indicated that it was no longer a viable proposition for them. My Office magazine and the weekly newsletters were taken back into SHOP-SA and a Chief Operating Officer, Mrs Hanlie Delport, was appointed. Since she took office, the magazine has been brought back in a digital format, the website of the Association has received a facelift, including a fresh and more modern brand and a new editor was appointed to ensure that My Office and the newsletters carried a larger percentage of original content.

Hans Servas reiterated in the report he compiled that any new initiatives will only bear fruit if they are supported by the industry. “It would be a sad day if lack of involvement and support would mean the end of a 107-year chapter,” Hans wrote in his final report as Chairman.

No new Board members were elected at the meeting but the Board may still co-opt members at its first meeting. The Constitution of the Association was changed – minor changes to get terminology in line with our current structure and to comply with SARS requirements for a PBO. These changes were approved at the AGM.�