Gift Focus - Sep/Oct 2019 (Issue 115)

15 NEWS & EVENTS BCTF WILL OPEN TO THE PUBLIC FOR ONE DAY IN 2020 The British Craft Trade Fair (BCTF) has revealed a major new development for the 2020 event, which will be opened to the public for one day before the full retail trade show gets under way. Show organiser Margeret Bunn announced the changes on the first day of BCTF 2019, which opened on April 7 th at the Yorkshire Event Centre in Harrogate. She commented: “In its 45-year history, BCTF has been open solely to trade buyers, but next year we will open the doors for one day to the public, allowing consumers to buy directly from the designer-makers exhibiting here.” The new opening dates for 2020 are April 4 th : open to the public; April 5 th : trade only; April 6 th : trade only; and April 7 th : trade only. This is an opportunity for the public to visit one of the largest shows in the UK exclusively dedicated to British designer- makers, many of whom do not show at other retail or trade events and cannot easily be found online. “This is a real celebration of all things British and handmade,” Margeret added, explaining that “demand from the public for locally made, sustainable products is running at an all-time high, and we want to do everything possible to help our exhibitors bring their crafts to market. BCTF is where people come to discover new and innovative products of the highest quality, and they deserve to be seen by as wide an audience as possible.” For more information, visit bctf.co.uk The Exclusively 2019 show ended with exhibitors in excellent spirits. The core show visitors were on a par with previous years, the number of retailers attending was up, although the number of delegates per retailer decreased. The show’s overall attendance rose by just over 5 per cent, fuelled by a relatively new breed of visitors to the show: the influencers and consumer press. “Exclusively 2019 was a quality show featuring more than 150 exhibitors presenting more than 275 of their brands,” says Will Jones, Bheta, chief operating officer and chairman Exclusively Shows. “The feedback from exhibitors has been positive, with many commenting on the quality of visitors to their stands, including new customers, as well as the increasing numbers of influencers and bloggers. It was very pleasing to witness the show’s Brand showcase initiative, now in its third year, gain considerable momentum, with attendance more than doubling that on 2018. This initiative alongside the Trend Initiatives with Scarlet Opus highlights how the content of the show does needs to adapt and mirror the changing face of the market.” This year, for the first time, the Informative Trend Talks program ran on both days, and welcomed full audiences. The show also offered talks from Scarlet Opus, who talked through interiors trends, providing an insight into what consumer will want next to help visitors know more about what consumers will be wanting to buy. To complement the Scarlet Opus talks, the show offered four trend tours, which drew capacity audiences. For those wanting to absorb the trends for the next 24 months in their own time, the show also produced captivating trend displays. 2019 also saw the introduction of trend talks and displays from the food people, talking about the food we will be eating in the next 24 months and applying this knowledge to the specialist equipment needed to recreate these meals and offering relevant serving solutions. Exclusively will take place at the Business Design Centre again in 2020 on the 9 th and 10 th June. Exclusively ends in high spirits PG Live 2019 a success This year’s PG Live, which took place in June, was a success, according to organiser Max Exhibitions, with an impressive visitor list featuring high-profile buyers, independents and more overseas distributors than ever before. This year’s show was also given an extra boost with two celebrity appearances. Tuesday saw culinary queen Prue Leith adding some zest to Day 1 as she launched her card range with Ling Design, while Wednesday saw iconic fashion legend Dame Zandra Rhodes launching her colourful debut greetings collection with Museums & Galleries. The relaxed atmosphere across the show floor was a celebration of the global greeting card community, with buyers from across the UK and more than 35 other countries (from Japan to New Zealand, the U.S. to Russia) – all making their selections for the coming year. The leading retail names who visited this year’s show included Between the Lines, Blue Diamond, Budget Greeting Cards, Cards Direct, Card Factory, Tesco, Thortful, TJMorris, TJX, Urban Outfitters, Utility Retail, Waitrose, Waterstones, WH Smith and WH Smith Travel, as well as a whole host of regional and independent retailers. Buyers were delighted with the quality and creativity shown by exhibitors, with Timothy Melgund, deputy chairman of Paperchase, describing the show as “remarkable and inspiring” before enthusing about the “tons of great product” on show. “There’s no doubt that everyone’s hard work paid off with this year with another fantastic show,” said Warren Lomax, joint-show director. “We would like to send a huge thank you to all of our exhibitors and, of course, the visitors that came along and helped make this year’s PG Live such an amazing success.” The dates for next year’s show have been confirmed as 2 nd -3 rd June, 2020. 

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