Dunelm Glass exhibited for the first time at PSI in Dusseldorf this year and really enjoyed the experience over there.

“The show was so good, we have immediately booked a larger space at next year’s show” said Ritchie Wilson (MD) “Trade shows are a fundamental part of our business and these are exciting times for the industry both in the UK and overseas”

Part of the process of getting involved with PSI meant funding and advice through the UKTI. Dunelm Glass became part of a ‘Passport to Export’ scheme which assists businesses exporting their goods internationally and really benefitted from the advice and funding available to them.
On the flip side of this they were invited to take part in a prestigious competition called ‘Export for Growth Prize’.

“We thought nothing of it” explained Chris Smith (Sales Manager) “We completed the application form and submitted it, then out of the blue six weeks later we received communication saying that we had been shortlisted!” 

Dunelm then had to work on a presentation and deliver it to a panel of judges at a venue in Newcastle. Up against all kinds of businesses they had 4 minutes to impress the panel with their company offerings and exporting plan.  In the following weeks after this they were informed that they had reached the final of the competition.

10 companies went head to head and deliver a presentation on stage in front of an audience of around 100 people from the local business community and various exporting bodies from around the region. On the panel of judges this time was Richard Podd – Director (PwC) Price Waterhouse Coopers in the North East, Simon Crosby – Senior International Trade Advisor (UKTI) , Martin Rogers – International Business Manager (HSBC) , Julie Underwood (North East Chamber of Commerce) & Richard Farleigh from Dragons Den!

“The day of the event was a nerve racking affair” added Chris “We were very happy with our pitch and delivered it well, overall we enjoyed the day and gave it our best effort, we also got some fantastic feedback from Richard Farleigh which was very encouraging!”
Ritchie explained “We were very much out of our comfort zone as this type of event does not relate to our industry at all; the high standard of the companies exporting all kinds of products and services internationally was exceptional.  We put a lot of time and effort into this and really enjoyed the experience!”

Dunelm Glass have done extremely well just to get to the final 10, the winner, a Middlesbrough based company Profile Analysis snapped up ?5000 worth of research and support for their I-Snapshot Sales Management Software System.

Richard Farleigh added, “All of the pitches we saw were of a very high quality and all of the businesses taking part genuinely have a unique selling point that could help them succeed. To all of the companies, and the winner Profile Analysis, I’d say to keep doing what they’re doing and to make sure they get the message out there about themselves.”

Published on: April 30th, 2012