Independent retailers turned out en masse for leading wholesalers Stax Trade Centres’ and Edinburgh based Wisharts’ in-house Big Brands Show trade events. Over the course of the two shows, held at Stax flagship Manchester branch on the 1^st and 2^nd of October and the MacDonald Inchyra Hotel, Falkirk on the 7^th October saw a record number of people attended to take advantage of all the shows had to offer.

Retailers came from all over the UK and Ireland to meet and buy from over 100 leading suppliers representing some of the biggest names in the DIY, garden, tools, electrical, plumbing and homewares sectors.

With a significant increase in footfall, the attendance was reflected in the number of orders that independent retailers placed on the opening day, displaying a real return of confidence. Stax Purchasing Director, Simon Wright commented,  “We are delighted with the results from both of the shows. Feedback from both customers and suppliers alike has been fantastic - The Big Brands Trade Shows have now cemented themselves as firm favourites in the trade show calendar in both England and Scotland.”

Both exhibitors and customers yet again praised the format of the shows, with the England show set right in the heart of the Stax Manchester branch whilst the Scotland show returned to the prestigious MacDonald Inchyra Hotel, Falkirk. 

New Stax customer, Kent Garden Centre commented, “Having only just registered at Stax Bristol, it’s our first time visiting The Big Brands Show. It’s been of real interest to our business and we’re totally blown away by the range and stock holding Stax carry!”

Exhibitors were equally impressed, with Ronseal Key Account Manager, Mark Sutton, commenting, “Big Brands is always a good show for us, but this year we’ve seen a big increase in sizable pre-season orders.”

Feedback was mirrored amongst all the top suppliers including Town & Country, ”It’s been another busy show with more exhibitors than ever before and a really good mix of quality customers,” said National Account Manager, Chris Noble.

The theme that was consistently fed back to show organisers from the suppliers in attendance was that the quality of orders taken and customer interest in the Brands was the most common factor for the success of the shows.  This is also illustrated by comments from Toby Golby of George East who comments, “We have been pleasantly surprised by the Big Brands Show and are delighted with the orders we have taken.”

Paul McKinley of Plasti-kote echoed these comments saying, “We took some great orders across both shows.  The level of interest in our products from the retailers who attended was brilliant and we hope that we have been able to educate them further about our brand and upcoming product launches.”

Whilst Tristan Tarman of D C Fix sums up the general mood of the exhibitors as he reflects, “We were very busy throughout both shows.  Looking back, the experience has been very positive with a fantastic level of customer interest.”

Stax Joint MD David Hibbert was buoyed by the confidence of Stax & Wishart customers, “We've were overwhelmed by such an impressive turnout as we were literally inundated with customers keen to see what exclusive deals they can pick up. There was a great buzz across both shows, as customers seemed more positive about the pick up in trade, with many capitalising on pre-season deals ahead of 2015. We would like to thank both our customers and suppliers for making the shows such a huge success and will look forward to welcoming them back again next year.”