NEWS

 

Sourcing City Marketplace is exclusively for VIPs and guests of distributor companies with a turnover in excess of £500,000 per annum. Launched at Farnborough FIVE in September 2011, the annual event gives each supplier an equal-sized ‘conversation pod’ to conduct pre-scheduled meetings over a two-day period.

 

Sourcing City Events executive chairman David Long told EN the promotional merchandise industry is worth more than £760m in the UK and Ireland across trade suppliers manufacturers, importers and wholesalers and trade distributors, making it a strong events opportunity. 

 

“We identified that almost every current industry event focused purely on product, and no-one was focusing on in-depth conversations about everything else the suppliers could offer in terms of support services,” Long said.

 

“We believe suppliers have a much bigger story to tell than simply talking about their products. In turn, professional distributors can benefit substantially for understanding the ‘complete offering’ of the suppliers.”

 

This year’s Sourcing City Marketplace was held on 26-27 September and themed ‘Ten things you did not know about us’. It featured 95 host suppliers, up from 65 last year, participating in 1,750 appointments.

 

“What matters to us is the true quality of the visitors,” Long explained. “The distributor companies registered to come to Sourcing City Marketplace in 2012 represent a market spend of £328m, which is 43 percent of the entire UK and Ireland market spend.”