The British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA) has launched the first in what is to become a series of events devoted to helping its members develop their export business.
The new initiative, entitled the Export Forum, will open with its first session on February 29 at BHETA head office Federation House.

The move follows what the association described as "an extremely enthusiastic reception" given to the principle at the last BHETA members' meeting, as well as the 'meet the buyers spring fair' initiative, which also focused on meeting overseas buyers.

BHETA also revealed that it will use the inaugural session of the Export Forum to launch a dedicated Export page on its website.

Speakers at the Export Forum events will include experts from UK Trade and Investment, and specialists in sourcing services and meeting compliance issues. This will be teamed with case studies from BHETA members that are already successfully trading overseas.

BHETA housewares sector director Will Jones said: "Export is becoming an increasingly hot topic for many manufacturers right across the home enhancement sector and BHETA is in a perfect position to pull together the necessary information to enable its members to succeed. Even more exciting is the opportunity to share experiences and pick up tips from colleagues already doing well."

DIY sector director Peter Stone added: "We are confident BHETA's new export initiatives are going to prove invaluable to members."

The organisation will issue full details of the first Export Forum agenda via the BHETA website nearer the time. However, it anticipates a good response and recommends that members register their interest with Peter Stone, Will Jones or Hayley Davis (hd@bheta.co.uk) as soon as possible.