Lichfield & Tamworth Lichfield & Tamworth Chamber Patrons
Contact: Marilyn Castree T: 0845 603 6650
Chamber welcomes IKEA boss
IKEA’s Dawn Lloyd will be the guest speaker at this year’s Lichfield and Tamworth Chamber annual general, which will take place on 14 July. The venue for the AGM will be the George Hotel
Lichfield, and Dawn will be speaking about the success of the famous Swedish lifestyle retailer. IKEA has several outlets in the West Midlands, including a large warehouse at Wednesbury and a ‘click and collect’ operation at Dale End, Birmingham, of which Dawn is the manager. The company, founded in Sweden in 1943, is
the world’s largest furniture retailer, and is known for its social initiatives, environmental stance and charitable giving.
‘They view anyone they meet as a potential customer, but also as a possible supplier’
Dawn joined IKEA in 1998, after a decade in
sales at Allsports. She occupied various roles at IKEA at Wednesbury, before moving to Dale End. She said: “I have a genuine love for the IKEA
Fantastic contribution: Andrew Buckman
product range, unique IKEA culture, values and passion for coaching co-workers to empower them to discover their real potential best.” Marilyn Castree, Lichfield and Tamworth Chamber director, said: “Dawn Lloyd will share with the audience IKEA’s business model, ethics and its management style. The company’s
Tamworth firm in China mission
A Tamworth therapeutic positioning solutions company has used a ten-day trip to China to help a charity which rescues abandoned children. Tamworth-based Simple Stuff Works has
developed a wide range of products to help people who need specialist support systems in bed, such as the severely disabled. Managing director Anna Waugh spent time
on her Far Eastern travels with International China Concern, a charity which her business has supported over recent years with donations of equipment. The charity supports children that have
been left abandoned and Anna met several of the children and staff and advised on how best to increase their levels of comfort and postural support by using improvised supports such as towels and blankets. She said: “During my time in Hong Kong and China I met some amazing people and we
34 CHAMBERLINK July/August 2017
are certainly planning to organise another trip soon with the aim of further spreading the message about the importance of postural care and correct sleep positioning.” Anna also visited Hong Kong, where she
spent several days with a special interest postural care group which brings therapists, families and teachers from across Hong Kong together to share their best practice and exchange stories and experiences they have encountered. She also demonstrated Simple Stuff Works’
latest products and held several practical positioning sessions. “The aim of the trip was to help educate healthcare professionals and families about the importance of postural care and correct sleep positioning from a young age,” she said. Anna also demonstrated Simple Stuff
Works’ latest products and held several practical positioning sessions.
business model is relevant for any company – their ethical stance is well known, and they view anyone they meet as a potential customer, but also as a possible supplier. “The AGM will be an opportunity for guests to
acquire more business knowledge, and also make new connections.” At the AGM, Chamber president James Blackman, whose term of office extends to next year, will give an update on his efforts to address late payment, which is an issue which particularly affects smaller businesses. Mr Blackman has made it the Chamber’s
mission to persuade all businesses to sign up to a ‘pay in 30 days’ pledge. Some 42 businesses in Lichfield and Tamworth have signed up so far. Also, the AGM will see long-standing Lichfield
board member Andrew Buckman leaving the board, after many years of service. Mr Buckman, who qualified as a chartered
surveyor in 1987, is a partner at Lichfield-based commercial real estate agency Kingston CPC. He has been particularly active at the Chamber on matters relating to policy and planning. Marilyn Castree said: “Andrew has made a fantastic contribution to the Chamber over the years. His knowledge on policy and planning has been invaluable.” Also standing down from the board is
Tamworth-based member Matt Rhodes, from information technology firm Quiss Technology.
MIA agent day is hailed a great
success The Meetings Industry Association (MIA) held a networking day at Mythe Barn, Atherstone, aimed at giving venue representatives the opportunity to meet agents face-to-face and build relationships. The sell-out event was attended by more than
15 agents, and 100 event professionals representing venues from Torquay to St Andrews. Joanna Garland, of Garlands Corporate, said:
“The MIA Agent day was a great opportunity for both agents and venues to come together and find better ways of working together. The Q&A session was very insightful, venue attendees came away understanding better what information agents require, why they operate in certain ways and what they can do to help their venue stand out. “Agents came away having clearer insight into
what venues expect from them and listened to independent venues who wanted to find out how they can increase their agent enquiry conversion rate.”
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