Garden retailers, garden designers, landscapers and builders’ merchants looking to build their business will not want to miss Glee 2016 from i2i Events (Sept. 12-14, NEC Birmingham), where the latest innovations, exciting new product launches, unrivalled networking opportunities and future trends all come together.
New sectors at Glee 2016
Outdoor Entertaining is the new home of garden leisure products. A new approach to this sector will focus largely on the move from ‘outdoor living’ to our garden spaces being an extension of our homes, with gardens taking centre stage when it comes to entertaining space. The revised sector will focus largely on how retailers can reinvigorate their offering to attract younger consumers into store to purchase core products such as outdoor furniture, barbecues, firepits, pizza ovens and exterior audio visual equipment.
Glee Garden Design & Landscaping has entered a new chapter in 2016 under the banner of Landscaping and Garden Decoration. This revitalised area will look at how retailers can better profit from a mixture of hard landscaping, and those decorative elements that help to complete most garden design projects.
Finally, Retail Experiences and Services will replace the area previously known as Retail Services. Offering shop-fittings, POS, EPoS and retail design, this area will be expanded in 2016 to better incorporate the wider aspects related to inspirational and functional retailing concepts. Glee’s established catering section will also find a new home within the Retail Experiences section and Services this year.
Special show features for 2016
The New Product Showcase and Glee Awards
The New Product Display is the place to see innovative, unique and commercial products from the hundreds of suppliers at Glee. The competition sees new designs and products perfectly displayed for your consideration with the best of each category receiving the accolade of a ‘Glee Award.’ Show visitors can also cast their vote for their favourite, awarding one lucky entrant with the title of ‘Retailers Choice Award’.
Seminar content, in association with The HTA
As always, Glee will offer visitors a free, three-day Seminar Programme organised in conjunction with the HTA (Horticultural Trades Association), which will share expert business and garden retail advice to help grow your business through challenging trading conditions.
This year’s show will be officially opened by TV’s Diarmuid Gavin, who will then be joining us within our seminar theatre to share his experience of how he got to where he is today in the industry. He will also share his top tips of how to encourage the younger generation into gardening.
Award-winning garden designer, TV gardening presenter, journalist and author, Ann-Marie Powell will also be joining Glee’s seminar programme, sharing her thoughts on the evolution of garden trends and also details of her journey to Chelsea.
Glee Innovators Zone
Launched in 2009, the Glee Innovators Zone has already helped more than 150 companies break into the garden retail market. This special area is designed to help nurture valuable grass-roots product development and one-off design ideas, whilst also bridging the gap between market-ready new product launches from established companies and pre-commercial product ideas. This year Glee’s Innovators Zone will be home to over 30 brand new companies.
GIMA Business Village
The GIMA Business Village is home to a great selection of up and coming companies exhibiting with the support of GIMA. Glee also presents the GIMA Business Lounge, an ideal place to take a break, arrange meetings and catch up with key suppliers. It is also home to the “Buyers Connect” speed networking sessions which will see selected exhibitors meet with show visitors for 10 minute slots for a power-networking session.
International Buyers Centre
International visitors will find the International Buyers Centre (IBC) in partnership with Gardenex a useful resource. Located in Hall 18, the IBC will be led by the team at Gardenex, who will be on hand to provide support and advice as well as translation services. The International Buyers Centre will also be home to “International Buyers Connect”, a special speed-networking event.
Register Today
Entry to Glee is free of charge to all pre-registered visitors. Simply register via the Glee website www.gleebirmingham.com/register. All pre-registered visitors will save £20 on the door, as well as receiving the Glee show preview if requested before the show to help plan their visit.
Glee 2016 takes place at the NEC, Birmingham, from Monday Sept. 12 to Wednesday Sept. 14 and opens between 9.00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. (Monday & Tuesday) and 4:00pm (Wednesday). To find out the latest news and to register for free entry, please visit www.gleebirmingham.com. For details on exhibiting at Glee, call 0203-033-2160.