Unimer Day 2010 - better than ever
Unimer Day 2010 - the most successful event ever!
(15 July 2010) United Merchants plc (Unimer), UK's leading invoice clearing house for the building products industry, is celebrating the phenomenal success of its annual Unimer Day. Over 350 delegates attended Unimer's trade show and corporate networking event held at the prestigious Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, South Wales, on the 7-8 July.
Suzanne Millward, Marketing Manager at Unimer, says: "This must be considered the most successful Unimer Day in Unimer's history so far. I am delighted that so many new members were able to join us this year, and the support from both merchants and suppliers have been tremendous. I am pleased to say that the positive comments we have received have exceeded our expectations".
"We found it very useful with regard to some new suppliers, and we also re-established some new links with suppliers that we haven't dealt with for a long time." Squaredeal
Over 350 delegates showed their support for the event by arriving at the Celtic Manor for the trade exhibition; Meet the Merchants sessions, dinner and networking opportunities. The exhibition hall was crowded with both new and existing suppliers showcasing their products and services.
"Time spent with both customers and potential customers, over two days, in a mainly relaxed atmosphere, at a great venue, is tremendously rewarding." Brett Martin
‘Meet the Merchants' sessions
The ‘Meet the Merchants' sessions are extremely popular and both Unimer members and suppliers took advantage of the opportunity to meet up during these ‘business speed-dating' sessions.
These hugely popular one-to-one meetings took place over 2 hours, with intense 15 minute pre-booked appointments.
"Wonderful couple of days. Have to say that I thought the "Meet the Merchant" Session was fantastic - really useful for all parties." Marsh TCP
Merchants were set up with their own tables in one of the halls, and suppliers attending during their allocated time slots. These sessions are always highly rated and provided suppliers with the opportunity to meet with new merchants as well as re-establishing old trading relationships.
Business & Networking
The Unimer Day at Celtic Manor is a unique combination of business opportunities, trade exhibition and corporate entertainment. So after gruelling 2 hours intensive meetings, the evening culminated in a dinner, where delegates could watch Spain beating Germany in the World Cup semi-final (sadly no English team in sight!).
During the dinner, Howard Grant, Managing Director of Unimer plc, took the opportunity to thank all members and suppliers for their support over the year despite the challenging market conditions. He also mentioned that Unimer has achieved outstanding results, and has achieved growth in a trading period when many businesses in the sector have gone backward and have had to focus on survival.
Excellent team and networking events
The Unimer Day ended on Thursday 8th July with team and networking events to enable members to carry on networking more informally and relax after the previous day's business sessions. Activities included golf on two different courses, off-road driving and clay pigeon shooting.
Coming next year - Unimer Day 7-8 July 2011
Positive feedback indicates that the Unimer event is highly appreciated for its more informal business and networking opportunities, with ample time for suppliers and merchants to discuss their current and potential business in more detail. And this is considered invaluable to build new and to further existing business relationships. Suzanne comments: "This year we had a number of merchants returning after some year's absence, and it is clear that the increased focus of this event to build sustainable and mutually beneficial business relationship is important to our merchants and suppliers alike".
Golf - Driving and Shooting Results from Unimer Day 2010
It was not all hard work though. During the Thursday, merchants and suppliers took part in a variety of 'social networking activities' including Golf on the Roman Road and Montgomerie Course, Off-road driving and the prestigious clay-pigeon shooting competition for the coveted Bob Beaver Cup. The winners are as follows:
Bob Beaver Cup
The winner of the Bob Beaver Cup at the Unimer Day 2010 was Simon Lucas of Gaza Timber. Well done Simon! We are sure he'll be back to defend the Cup next year.
Golf - Roman Road Course
1st Team - Nick Wall, Lester Pym, Rodney Pym, Steve Hoyle
(89 pts, back 9)
1st individual - Steve Hoyle (40 pts)
Nearest the pin - Andrew Livermore
Longest Drive - John Fairley
Golf - Montgomerie Course
1st team - Jordan Parry, John Rees, Mike Morris, Paul Read (84 pts)
1st individual - Lee Walklett (41 pts, back 9)
Nearest the pin - Colin Woods
Longest Drive - Mark Stockton
Driving
The winning team: Carl Carey, Kevin Oakes, Mary Havelin, Katherine Jennings, Mike MacLellan.
Well done to all of you!
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For further information, please contact:
Suzanne Millward
Marketing Manager
Email: s.millward@unimer.co.uk
DDI: 01903 857 347
Mobile: 07872 379 714