BHETA forms Export Committee
Published: 12 July 2017 - Fiona Garcia
The British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA) has created a new committee to drive initiatives in support of the export opportunities throughout its membership.
The committee's objective is to encourage BHETA members to start exporting their goods or to further develop an existing export business
The new Export Committee, which held its first meeting on June 7, is chaired by What More UK director Tony Grimshaw. The other committee members are Meyer Group business development director Geoff Gorst, Monument Tools managing director Jonathan Collier, Vegtrug CEO Joe Denham, and Will Jones and Nicola Adams-Brown from BHETA.
The Export Committee’s overriding objective is to encourage and support BHETA members to either start exporting or to build their existing export business. It is already working with the Department for International Trade (DIT) and the international Chambers of Commerce to explore opportunities for overseas missions, international shows, and grant availability in support of such opportunities.
A specific initiative already actioned by the BHETA Export Committee was the provision of a list of international housewares, tableware, and small domestic appliance buyers for special invitation to attend the Exclusively Housewares and Exclusively Electrical shows in June. The move saw retailers from as far afield as Australia, Poland, Latvia, the Czech Republic, and Hong Kong travel to the shows, as well as buyers from across Europe.
The Export Committee is also hosting a BHETA Export Forum for members on October 11 at Austin Court in Birmingham to coincide with the Chamber’s International Annual Conference on the following day.
Commenting on the new emphasis on export, BHETA housewares director Will Jones said: “The market is very tough for many suppliers at the moment and BHETA has been encouraging members to explore various forms of diversification for some time. Given that the one upside of the fall in the pound’s value is improved conditions for export, finding and building relationships with customers overseas has to be a tremendous opportunity. The BHETA Export Committee aims to help members exploit this opportunity to the maximum.”
For more information about the newly-formed committee, contact BHETA member services on 0121 237 1130 or visit www.bheta.co.uk.