PEOPLE NEWS Obituary: Jane Oliphant – 1953-2020


Jane Oliphant, the founder editor


Magazine and a former member of


of Housewares the DIY Week


editorial team, died on 3 August 2020, four years after being diagnosed with cancer, and being told to expect to live only another six months. She was 67. Jane joined Benn Publications in Tonbridge in 1972 as an editorial assistant on Nurseryman & Garden Centre, reporting to the editor Bryan Farthing, and later deputising for him as acting editor when he suffered a lengthy illness. When he was promoted to editor of Hardware Trade Journal (later re-launched as DIY Week) he took Jane with him, first as features editor and subsequently assistant editor – although she returned to N&GC for while when its new editor was also absent. Working on HTJ brought her into contact with housewares, which was then emerging as a buoyant market: aspirational cooking and entertaining was a growing cultural


trend, and


specialist cookshops were opening to cater for that demand. Under its publisher Christopher Leonard-Morgan, Hardware Trade Journal responded to the trend with the launch in 1982 of a specialist supplement named Housewares and Small Electrical Appliances, with Jane as editor. The response from readers and advertisers was immediate and


enthusiastic, and only a year later the supplement became a standalone publication in its own right as Housewares.


Jane remained editor for five


years, building the magazine into a powerful voice for the housewares industry, until in 1989 she decided to spread her wings and went freelance. She continued to write for various Benn magazines, and remained in


close touch with


the housewares market. In 1999 Benns sold its home- interest portfolio to Faversham House Group, and in 2005 the divisional publisher Colin Petty invited her back; Housewares Focus, another FHG title, had suffered a serious setback in the hands of an inexperienced editor. Jane stepped in, and calmly and competently put the magazine back on its feet. FHG reorganised the portfolio in 2007, merging Housewares and Housewares Focus into a single print title, and launching the UK’s first online housewares industry presence under the title Housewares Live. Jane drove Housewares Live from day one, achieving impressive visitor numbers and page impressions, and was also part of the team that launched the Housewares Conference in 2008, reinforcing FHG’s position as the business- to-business market leader for the housewares industry. She became a core member of the Faversham House


home improvement team, contributing to DIY Week and Hardware & Garden Review as well as Housewares Live, and producing one-off housewares supplements


Knife Handbook. When


like the Kitchen the


editor of Builders Merchants Journal was away on maternity leave, Jane stepped in and ran the magazine for a year. “She was unflappable,” said Colin Petty. “Whenever the need arose, she just calmly got on with it, and produced consistently professional results.” Jane joined the DIY Week team as consultant editor in 2012, supporting editor Fiona Hodge


(now Garcia) and


contributing to both print and online, as well as the magazine’s annual Leaders supplements. She moved with the publication when Faversham House sold its home improvement portfolio to Datateam Business Media the following year, and continued in her role as a key part of the editorial team. Jane donned her editor hat once more in February 2016 when Fiona Garcia went on maternity leave. However, she received her cancer diagnosis shortly afterwards and, upon learning that her illness was terminal, took the decision to step away from the magazine. “It was an absolute pleasure to know and work with Jane,” said Mrs Garcia. “She was a dedicated and passionate


Brett Avery to join HTA Board as Vice-President


The Horticultural


Trades Association (HTA) is delighted to announce that Brett Avery, Managing Director of Farplants, is to join


the HTA


Board as Vice- President.


Originally from New Zealand, Brett was the co-founder and Managing Director of Avery Robinson Ltd, a company distributing Dyson products, for 17 years. Brett then moved to the UK and worked for Savortex Ltd, an IoT (Internet of Things) hand-hygiene technology company, before moving on to Farplants as the Managing Director where he has been for over four years. This background and experience with other consumer sectors will make Brett a valuable addition to the HTA Board. Brett is also the Chair of the Retail Suppliers Group, represents the group on the Ornamental Management Committee, and sits on the Commercial Committee. Commenting on the appointment Boyd Douglas- Davies, HTA President, said: “We are delighted to announce Brett’s appointment to the HTA Board as Vice-President. Brett has a rather unique position in our industry in that he represents a group of growers. His strong understanding of their needs, as well as the customers they serve, means he has extensive and valuable commercial insight.


www.diyweek.net


This along with his consumer background will prove a real asset and addition to the HTA Board.” Brett Avery commented: “The HTA demonstrated its vital place in the horticultural industry in recent months throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, especially


through its successful lobbying


for garden centre reopening and achieving a commitment from Government to a recovery and growth strategy for the sector. Communications to members have never been more important, and whilst this is an increasingly strong area for the association, I am honoured to be able to join the team to help steer future growth and development.”


The Farplants Group is a wholesale supplier of


outdoor plants to garden centres and garden centre chains in the UK. Based on the West Sussex coast near Chichester, the co-operative group has four member nurseries, each specialising in different ranges. The group now produces over 11 million plants a year on 70 hectares (170 acres) of mixed facilities with a retail value of over £50 million. Up to 500 staff are employed during the peak gardening period through the spring and early summer. Brett’s appointment follows the recent news about Jane Lawler,


Lawler Associates; Vicky


Nuttall, The Garden Industry Manufacturer’s Association (GIMA); and Ken White, Frosts Landscape Construction, who joined the HTA Board in June.


Appointments will be ratified at the forthcoming HTA AGM which will take place on 16 September.


member of the DIY Week team, who happily shared her vast experience with us all and would always take new reporters under her wing. She had a keen nose for a news story – something we often joked about – and, somehow, she always kept a cool head, no matter how tight the deadline. More than


anything, though, she was a lot of fun to be around and a wonderful friend.


“Jane built and nurtured a great number of relationships with people across the housewares


and home


improvement industry over the years and I am in no doubt that she will be greatly missed.”


Carl Kammerling appoints


new Head of Marketing


Carl Kammerling International, a leading supplier in hand tools, tools storage, power tool accessories and security solutions, has announced the appointment of Mark Raines as Head of Marketing. Mark joins CKI from Bosch Power Tool Accessories where he worked as a Head of Product Management at their Headquarters in Switzerland, with responsibility for one of the product management teams.


Raines’ excellent background speaks for itself.


He began


his career in sales in 2006, selling industrial consumables. Mark then moved into country marketing at the beginning of 2012, for the same company who were owned by Bosch Power Tools. This led to the opportunity to join Bosch Power Tool Accessories in Switzerland in 2014.


Raines’ wide-ranging experience in both product and project management and knowledge of the full marketing mix, will prove invaluable in his new role as Head of Marketing at CKI.


Raines commented: “I am very much looking forward to being part of the exciting growth plans at CKI and helping to shape that future. In addition to supporting the development of the new marketing team and pushing what we do to the next level, I am keen to learn what our end users need and how we can deliver the best value for them in our future product and range developments.”


AUGUST 2020 DIY WEEK 7


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