SPRING FAIR REVIEW SPRING FAIR


SPRING FAIR REVIEW


DIY VENTURE AW


SPRING F This month saw Spring Fair’s new fora y into DIY o DIY


he most notable first impression when walking into Hall 10 of the NEC, Birmingham in the midst of Spring


area manager Otto V Otto Vallinga. “It’s Va


been a r eally good show for us and we’ve found that the timescales mean we’ve have a lot of time with customers, which is gr eat.”


Fair ’s almost week-long r un, is how compact the space is, something upon which many visitors and exhibitors It’s almost a case of


commented.


walking a few paces and having to turn back on yourself before straying into the next hall. However as this year marked the show’s first decisive delve into DIY – the show did, briefly


However y,, partner with To r,, Totally a


few years ago in an arrangement that didn’t ultimately benefit anyone much – these modest beginnings are to be expected. And they certainly didn’t detract fr om the enthusiasm of the exhibitors speaking to DIY Week from the stands. “We’ve seen a lot


We We e’ve seen a lot of new customers,” enthused Plastikote’s


The show’s wide-ranging scope – Spring Fair covers 14 dif fer ent sectors including Gift, Fashion and Seasonal, with a total exhibitor number of 2,500 – means it attracts a mor e varied ilk of visitor than its dedicated DIY counterpart show Totally DIY To& To like Plastikote,


w,, To


ools. For suppliers this


that works well. “W We


of interest from buyers from craft stor es and arts shops, not just DIY explained Mr Val


Vallinga. “We We would


certainly be interested in coming back next year based on the interest and success we’ve had here so far. He added: “I think DIY is a really valuable addition to Spring Fair and, from that perspective, we would book again.”


A. Perry, A familiar face could be found on AkzoNobel’s Dulux stand 8 DIY WEEK 24 FEBRUARY 2017


for Spring Fair’s new DIY foray despite having chosen to exhibit in the Gift department, where its metal gar den art garnered a huge amount of interest. “We did about £35,000-worth of sales in the first day,,” say ,” said sales manager Patrick Corcoran. “It was fantastic. W have a look r ound the DIY hall too and I think it worked well. W certainly consider exhibiting there with the relevant lines next year.” The show was also a busy one for Centurion, which enjoyed mor e than its fair share of bustle on stand. “It’s been a good show for us,” said sales and marketing manager Peter Stone. “There hasn’t been a quiet moment on the stand during the show’s entir e duration. We’ve had lots of new business and I think it’s been a worthwhile venture.”


Hinges and hardwar e supplier too, was full of praise y,,


y, We


n. “It was fantastic. We hink it worked well. We


We did We’d


We


The owdscrowds dr ew in as Spring Fair opened doors but the jury’s still out for the show’ s DIY futur Jury’s Out busy


ro future re the


Though the aisles had a decidedly busy , business-generating feel toy,, business-generating fee them, there wer e certainly a fewquiet moments to be had, particularly after lunch. A lot of traffic seemed to depend on stand placement, with those towards the back of the hall not benefiting as much fr om thr ough-far e


between halls


nine and eleven. “Ther e have been some quiet moments in the hall,” said Mica Co-operative marketing assistant Oliver Whiteley,y, o n th e Monday afternoon. “It has tended to heat up around lunchtime. WevWe’ve had some good quality leads, which is the most important thing, and also seen a number of Mica r etailers on the stand. I think the consensus so far is that the move from T otally was the right thing to do but the first year of any new show is going to be a learning curve.”


We e To o www.diyweek.net is a formul a


“We’ve had a lot Y,,”


G FA GFAIR’SFA


DRA WS A CROWDAWS T


Y,, with the opening of a dedica ted show sector which underwent a


six-day run at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham from February 5-9. With more than 50 exhibitors, including some of the biggest names of the industry, the show drew mainly positive reviews. JennyWonnacott reports...


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