Thumbs up for Merchandise World
It was our first year visiting Merchandise World at Silverstone and we were impressed! We were treated to breakfast, lunch and an all you can eat pick ‘n’ mix, but the best part was, of course, was seeing so many exciting and new products! It was great to see so many passionate promotional suppliers under one roof.
We chatted with lots of suppliers and met other industry professionals, many giving us a real education into them and their products – demonstrating how to use them, explaining the branding opportunities as well as telling us the history of their company. This one on one time spent with suppliers is invaluable, especially as many of the people exhibiting have been in the industry for years, some being old friends that it’s nice to have the opportunity to catch up with over a coffee. It was good for us all to share our knowledge and exchange any tips and tricks!
Hot Promotional Product Predictions for 2018
Our hot predictions for products fresh off the show for 2018 are basically anything that fits into the wireless technology and drinkware categories. There were not only lots of these products on display, but lots of interest from the distributors and printers visiting the suppliers stands.
Branded Drinkware
Reusable drinkware is all over the news at the moment with the #passonplastic movement from SkyOceanRescue, companies are investing in reusable items, particularly drinkware, in order to be much more environmentally friendly. Many big brand coffee shops are offering incentives to bring your own drinks receptacles and councils ar and public transport companies are announcing plans to install water refill points also, making drinkware a hot item with great brand awareness opportunities. There are so many variations of water bottles and reusable coffee cups, in materials from plastic and steel to bamboo, all of which can be branded with your company logo.
Visit our Branded Drinkware page to see our great range of reusable water bottles and coffee cups.
New and Old Technology Products
Next up, the technology category, where Bluetooth speakers and wireless chargers appeared to very popular this year. Bluetooth speakers are a great promotional gift because they are portable, can be taken with you when travelling, chilling in the park or in the office, plus, they often have great brand areas and come in so many different colours and styles. Not a “new” product, but one that still seems to be going strong!
Wireless chargers are very popular right now! They’re new (ish), look cool and slick on your desk and offer great brand areas. When Apple released it’s iPhone 8 with wireless charging capabilities we had a feeling that this product would take off. We love the wooden charging mats in particular as they can be branded on both sides and offer a high-end eco appearance. For those who are tech savvy or work in a fast-moving and modern industry, this really is a must brand product.
As well as all the new tech products, it was great to see old favourites like calendars and notebooks are still going strong, and we were very impressed at ways in which these products are being modernised and relaunched. Reeve Calendars showcased award-winning 360degree interactive calendars which could be viewed with VR glasses!
View our Best-Selling Range of Technology Products for branding.
What Else We Learnt
There were some interesting seminars which had also been organised by the BPMA and Sourcing City, one of which focused on GDPR. It gave attendees a good insight into what to expect and what businesses need to do to be prepared for this change in May. It proved to be the most popular seminar of the whole 2 days, highlighting what a big impact this was going to have on the way businesses are run.
Merchandise World was very well organised by the BPMA and we enjoyed it a lot. What it showed us is that the promotional market is not slowing down anytime soon and will continue to grow. Merchandise World this year was attended by over 1000 industry professionals. We look forward to it next year.
Get more information on the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA), an association Brandelity is very proud to be a member of.
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