Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
The British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA) has declared the latest in its series of Meet The Buyer days as ‘another great event’.
Organised in conjunction with multiple retailer Argos, the initiative took place on February 19 at the Holiday Inn in Milton Keynes. A total of 45 suppliers held some 75 appointments with 10 members of the Argos buying team. All categories were represented and the event was headed up by Argos trading manager for home Yvonne Stinston.
As with all BHETA Meet The Buyer days, BHETA suppliers were allocated a 20-minute appointment with the relevant buyer. With over 750 stores located within a 10-mile radius of 90% of the UK population and the nation’s third most visited website, Argos’ brief for the event was two-fold: to find new suppliers of both branded and own-label products that would enhance its current consumer offer, and to meet existing Argos suppliers focusing on new products outside of current listed business.
Typical comments from BHETA participants include this view from Lisa Scott of housewares supplier Gourmet Gadgetry, who said: “We found it really positive for business. The event was brilliantly structured and we went into the meeting prepared and confident, having utilised the presentation suggested by BHETA. It’s such a great way to get in front of the right buyer for your category.”
BHETA home enhancement sector director Will Jones added: “It was so satisfying to put on an event where participants appeared to enjoy an experience that will also lead to additional business for BHETA members. The feedback from Argos has been excellent, particularly in regard to the BHETA presentation format, which allowed the buyers to focus absolutely on their category development opportunities.”
Companies interested in taking part in future Meet The Buyer days or other BHETA retail engagement events can contact BHETA on 0121 237 1130 or email wj@bheta.co.uk or ps@bheta.co.uk.
*Yvonne Stinson, Trading Manager for Home at Argos, will be giving a presentation at The Housewares Conference 2015, which takes place on April 22 at The Selsdon Park in Croydon, Surrey. Visit www.housewaresconference.co.uk for more information and to book a place, or contact event manager Laurie Marrington at lmarrington@datateam.co.uk.
