The only thing that matters is what the visitors and exhibitors thought about Merchandise World at Stoneleigh, and we are pleased to say many have told us that they were more than pleased. Here is a selection of the comments the Merchandise World team received… 

Mike Smith at Orb: “Great show, with the right suppliers and right distributors in the room!”

Jody Fletcher at Chilli Promotional Products: “Excellent event – brilliant use of time. Really looking forward to the next one already!”

Jamie Hutcheon at Cocoa Oooze: “It was our first year at the show and we were impressed by the quality of visitors who attended over the 2 days, they were engaging, knew what they wanted and interested in what we had to offer.”

Gary Cable at BTC Group: “Merchandise World in September was perfect for the key players in the industry both on the supplier and distributor sides. A catch up in time for the Christmas and end of year run in plus the opportunity to discuss new launches or products since the start of the year.”

Haydn Willetts at Mid Ocean Brands: ”Strong format, location, attendees, business potential with a mixture of appointments and drop ins.”

Gina Tofallis at EMC: “Having visited the first Merchandise World show I am pleased to say for me it was a success, I had some good meetings and met a few new suppliers, which is always a positive thing! I found it very well organised, thank you!

Lloyd Simpson at LSi: “Fantastic event, relaxed atmosphere and the ability to have meaningful discussions with suppliers and more importantly time!“

Tracey Bowen at PF Concept: “The show was well run, professional and the customers attending were there to do business at a professional level. Just the kind of customers we want to nurture at PF. Attendance was very good and visitor numbers were manageable, giving the PF team time to have good quality and meaningful conversations which sometimes is not easy at these kind of events. The BPMA and Sourcing City together put on a professional event which we will certainly be involved in again next year. Food was also great!”

Mike Beese at Dectek Ltd: “A dynamic organisation with a well-structured marketing event.”

Richard Pettinger at Ignite Incentives: “Wonderful to see a show for the trade professionals run by professionals. I hope the trade can continue to back this format.” 

Geine Pressendo at Simply Crackers: “This event has a great concept in motion which is to put suppliers and promotional agents together. Looking forward to the next. It will get better and better.”

Nicholas Humphery-Smith at Ancestors of Dover: “We were bowled over by the take up we had on the Branding World where we were showing laser engraving and pewter casting. This really gave us as a business an opportunity to show what we can do and how it would could benefit the industry with full customisation available. A really great idea and we would support this again with showing other different manufacturing processes.”

Joy Schoelink at Bottle Promotions: “As an EU based company, the Sourcing City Team offers the best service that I know of. Great Job.”

Christine Girven at SPS: “We loved being a part of Merchandise World. We had some real quality conversations with a number of our key customers. It was a great opportunity to highlight new products and developments at this time of year. The whole event was incredibly well organised and ran very smoothly.”

Andrew Kouroushi at Stormtech: “Great organisation and high quality of potential customers.” 

Mandy Hastie at The Sweet People: “A good first show which can only get better with experience.” 

Gerry Thomas at Plastec Print: “Sourcing City always produce a good show.” 

Katie Samuel at Animal: “This was our first time at Merchandise World, and also the first time we have looked at co-branding opportunities on our own product. We were naturally apprehensive about how the industry would react to our presence, and whether the show would provide us with an alternative avenue to market but I am pleased to say that it exceeded all expectations. We received a very positive welcome from all attendees, and everyone was excited and interested to hear what we are able to offer. We gathered a lot of good quality contacts and leads during the two days and we are looking forward to building on these over the coming weeks. As a result of the support that we were given this time, we have booked our stand for January and cannot wait to show everyone what we have to offer.”

Jamie Marshall at Premier Print and Promotion: “Excellent show, excellent venue, lovely to catch up with old and new suppliers/distributors. The event demonstrated why our industry is great, because of the people.”

Andrew Langley at Juniper: “Congratulations to the BPMA and Sourcing City for putting on a great show. The quality of the visitors and the conversations that we experienced was superb. As ever the support staff were extremely helpful and attentive and we look forward too many more Merchandise World Events.”

Brian Chappelhow at Chappelhow Marketing: “An essential vehicle for face to face relationship building with suppliers. No better way to be introduced to new ideas. 

Malcolm Fritschy at Oldeani: “The exhibition went well for us and it was well organised, with quick and easy access. We managed to secure meetings with a select few whom we have been trying to get to see for a long time. All in all, myself and the girls were delighted with the flow of traffic and result, well done, we know how hard it is for you guys to put on a great exhibition.” 

Grant Ashworth at U Name It: “A very effective and worthwhile launch event; well organised and I look forward to the January event.”

Godfrey Odonnell at Keramikos: “Both Keramikos and Thermalmate had a great show, top quality visitors, time to engage and not just say hello, well organised and a gem of a venue. Special thanks for the tea and coffee trolley team that walk around…. Well done all.”

Carlo Nardini at Pro-Ad: “Merchandise World was a wonderful show. Good access, good parking and more importantly time to speak with key people and discuss all matters great and small in our partnership of service and supply. Well done, looking forward to January!”

Colin Loughran at Goldstar-Europe: “I just wanted to say a massive thank you to you, David and all the Sourcing City team for organising such a wonderful show. Having a strong peak season show is important for the UK market, and Merchandise World certainly meets that need. All the little touches like free coffee and snacks were lovely and made for a great atmosphere, and we look forward to the next one.”

Lynn Corrigan at Senator Pens: “Exhibiting at MW17 offered us the perfect opportunity to showcase the Senator brand to many highly-valued distributors, demonstrating our core brand values; quality, service, and (above all) integrity. As a manufacturer, these must be evident in everything we do. MW17 was the perfect platform in which to show this, and to convey why our customers trust Senator to represent some of the world’s top brands.”

Mark Alderson at First Editions: “Thank you to all the team at SC and the BPMA for their huge effort to create such a fantastic event. The exhibition was a great success giving us access to some real quality leads. I look forward to seeing everyone in January for another exciting event. The Briman group also enjoyed a successful couple of days at Merchandise World. Meeting many of the industry’s leading companies the group enjoyed the opportunity to explain why buying British product can be so beneficial. A particular highlight was the production area where many British manufacturing techniques were demonstrated to distributors first hand.”

Neil Collis at Promotional Ceramics: “I really enjoyed the show at Stoneleigh, I thought you guys did a great job in getting the top distributors there for us to see.”