Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
Members of the taskforce created by BHETA (British Home Enhancement Trade Association) to address issues around the responsible retail of bladed items have met the Trading Standards Institute to share knowledge and discuss best practice.
BHETA said the meeting, which included BHETA marketing manager Steve Richardson (who is also liaising with Scotland Yard on the matter) and Trading Standards Institute chief executive Leon Livermore ‘explored a number of avenues related to product design and development, retail fixtures and point of sale including the use of ‘Challenge 25’; and methodologies for monitoring and testing’.
Steve explained: “This was a first meeting but we established a lot of common ground in terms of furthering the legitimate purchasing interests of consumers and the legitimate trading interests of retailers and suppliers.
“The draft for the new Offensive Weapons Act [OWA] is still under consideration by the new Government following last year’s consultation period, so it’s vital that all parties use this time to ensure they are doing everything possible to address the very complex issues of knife crime, while protecting responsible commercial activity and the interests of legitimate consumers. We will be meeting again to take discussions further.”
Among queries arising from the OWA consultation period was the revised definition of ‘bladed item’ in the context of the act. In the latest draft, for example, products such as cutlery, scissors and garden secateurs are included.
The BHETA responsible knife retailing taskforce includes representatives from John Lewis & Partners, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Lakeland, Dunelm, TK Maxx, Elys of Wimbledon, Harts of Stur, Taylor’s Eye Witness, Amefa, Fiskars, Meyer, Haus, Burton McCall, Kuhn Rikon, Rayware and Robert Welch Designs.
For more information about the BHETA responsible knife retailing campaign and BHETA lobbying, contact the member services team on 0121 237 1130 or visit www.bheta.co.uk.
Challenge 25 is a scheme that encourages anyone who is over 18 but looks under 25 to carry acceptable ID (a card bearing the PASS hologram, a photographic driving licence or a passport) when they want to buy alcohol.
BHETA is to provide officially sanctioned Challenge 25 artwork to suppliers, retailers and delivery companies involved in the legitimate supply of age-restricted bladed items such as kitchen knives.
The collateral, which is available through BHETA’s member services team, includes artwork for labels, posters, shelf barkers and badges for use in-store – plus artwork for supplier packaging and labels for outer cartons used in home delivery.
The material has all been approved by The Wine & Spirit Trade Association, which created the original Challenge 25 concept for use in the sale of alcoholic drinks, and the Metropolitan Police’s Knife Crime Steering Group.
