On its second day, Source Home & Gift, the top global sourcing platform for home and gifts, carried on with its mission to become a force for good in the retail sector by offering a space where new relationships, concepts, and opportunities are realized. ALDI, B&Q, Lucy & Yak, Ocado, Sue Ryder, House of Marbles, Widdop & Co., Cardology, RSPCA, National Trust, Amazon, Blue Diamond, Tik Tok, Card Factory, and many more are among the notable attendees of the show today.
Suzanne Ellingham, Event Director for Source Home & Gift says, The word “source” means “where things originate,” and we think that working in tandem with the people you source from is the first step towards making lovely, well-made products. Our goal is to facilitate the creation of attractive, ethically produced items by the retail industry by bringing reputable manufacturers and craftsmen from throughout the globe to the NEC Birmingham. We support ethical and environmentally friendly manufacturing practices, highlighting exhibitors that uphold these ideals and share their inspiring tales. Here, producing goods of the highest caliber and conducting business well go hand in hand.
“Our mission is to connect the global sourcing community, bringing together innovative makers and artisans, with extraordinary uniqueness and craftsmanship, and manufacturers who care about how products are made, under one roof. And connecting them to brands and retailers looking to buy and source better products and want to work with businesses whose values align with their own. Source Home & Gift is where responsibility meets style, connections turn into collaborations, and where your imagination and ideas can be brought to life.”
Over 400,000 independent businesses, from independent department stores to tiny pet shops, are represented by the British Independent businesses Association (BIRA) across the United Kingdom. “We know that customers want to be more conscious and responsible in their purchasing, and they also expect the businesses they use to lead by example, so we want to help those businesses,” said the company’s CEO, Andrew Goodacre, who was in attendance. Source Home & Gift effectively connects merchants and suppliers, assisting all parties in comprehending the route involved. As I strolled around the halls, I was struck by how beautifully and creatively made the gifts were. To any retailer trying to discover a way to stand out from the competition, I would advise
Lesley Kennedy, Retail Development Manager at the RSPCA, and Fran Vallely, Shop Manager at the RSPCA, visit Source Home & Gift since their values are so similar.In our charitable stores, we offer brand-new products to raise money for the RSPCA. We cherish your visit to Source Home & Gift since we are always looking for new and creative products and suppliers to meet the needs of our clients. It is imperative that we try to be environmentally aware and that we buy things that won’t harm the environment. Being a member of the green and circular economy is essential to who we are as a nonprofit organization and how we conduct business.
Feedback from the show floor throughout the day remained positive. Proudly produced in Portugal, Bioneurodesign debuted at Source Home & Gift with creations that embody the rich heritage and craftsmanship of the region. Julio Felix, CEO at Bioneurodesign said, “We decided to come to Source Home & Gift as we wanted to showcase our new range of products to the UK market, and we knew this provided an excellent opportunity to do that. We’ve established some great leads already and still have more of the exhibition to go!’’
The Responsible Sourcing Stage persisted in offering workshops intended to elicit imagination and discourse.The Responsible Retail Stage Seminar program at Source Home & Gift was introduced by retail consultant Ian Scott with a talk titled “The Merging Roles of Technology & Humans in Retail.” Examining how physical retail has changed since COVID and the special qualities of in-person shopping as the hub of retail ecosystems that deliver experiences that are not possible with digital technology. “90% of retail is understanding human behaviors and 10% is product,” said Ian, “the Intention Action Gap of what we say and what we actually end up doing has never been more prevalent in retail.” Scott continued, “Human-technology collaboration can yield the most effective retail solutions.”
Human interaction is ingrained in our DNA. We also know that Touching Points boost sales and that physical stores are more appealing to customers than online ones because of their linear, binary design. In many businesses, traditional retail views employees as an extra expense, but in reality, your employees are the live representation of your brand. Technology and in-person retail are going hand in hand in the future to provide a smooth shopping experience.
The panel discussion, “Retail 100’s Regional Intelligence: How to Source in New Regions and Optimize Your Sourcing Strategy,” was led by Sara Allbright, co-founder and director of Retail 100 Consulting. “There are many considerations and decisions to make in order to build a profitable sourcing strategy. This can be an overwhelming task if you’re just starting out on your sourcing journey, especially if you want to make more ethical and sustainable business decisions,” the speaker stated.
