Merchandise World
WE m e et AGAIN The industry assembles in Milton Keynes in September. Here’s what Merchandise World will have in store
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t’s hard to believe that it is more than a year and a half since the last Merchandise World event. Who would have thought as we waved goodbye to clients, colleagues, and friends after a storming return of the main industry event to Coventry’s Ricoh Arena, that it would be so long before the industry would gather again? No wonder the comeback event on 8 September at the Milton Keynes Arena has the tagline ‘Bringing the industry back together’. It seems a long time in coming. Of course, the event will be slightly different to those in the past, with a COVID safety policy in place to protect visitors and exhibitors (see page 17). However, with Sourcing City boss David Long predicting around 100 exhibitors, it looks like the industry can’t wait to get back to meeting face to face. Long says that visitor number may be down slightly as COVID has taken its toll on industry staffing levels in many distributor companies. “Feedback is that many distributors
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are planning to attend as they see it as valuable and essential to meet with suppliers. However, it is anticipated that visitor registrations will be later than normal this year as distributors plan to cover their workload in order to attend,” he said. “It is forecast that about 450 to 500 visitors will attend, which should ensure many productive meeting for exhibitors and visitors alike. As always it is ‘quality rather than quantity’ that truly matters.” Show organiser, Ella Long certainly thinks so. She said: “We are delighted that so many suppliers are keen to meet existing and new customers in person once again. This enthusiasm is matched by many distributor visitors who are looking forward to getting together with known and new suppliers. The event and venue is prepared and we can’t wait to see people enjoying themselves as the industry starts to rebuild with purpose.” Keith Lewis, operations manager, Premier Brands agrees with those sentiments. “Whilst Zoom or Skype meetings have their benefits, I think it’s fair to say we have all missed being able to meet face
| SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
to face,” he said. “A physical event brings both suppliers and distributors together on a different level and, we’re looking forward to showcasing our range of new products at Merchandise World.” Daniel Clarke, business development executive at Eat My Logo, is another exhibitor looking forward to the return of Merchandise World. “In my business development role it has been great building relationships with lots of distributors on the phone and via video, however I am really looking forward to meeting people face to face at MW21 in September,” he said. “We’ve got some great new products in development that we will be bringing to the show, and we hope that these will spark the interest of our distributor partners.” At Oldeani, Lucy Bennett said that as regular exhibitors, the company would be in Milton Keynes. “Shows are really important to us. Our products are selected for their quality and design. Whilst photos and the internet are great, we need people to see products
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