On May 23 eight TGCG buyers met with 56 members of The British Home Enhancement Trade Association to uncover potential future deals.
This was the sixth event in BHETA's Meet the Buyer series and during the day members of BHETA were allowed a 20-minute appointment with the buyers.

Commenting on the event, Jasper Raby of TGCG said: "The Meet the Buyer concept is a great idea. It helps buyers save time and uncover new ideas that might not have been found otherwise.

"We should do this annually as we often get approaches from potential suppliers and don't have time to see them all."

One BHETA member who was looking to sell at the event was Kosnic, an electrical company specialising in low energy and LED technology.

The company's retail and export director, Richard Green, said of the event: "BHETA has again given us an opportunity that we would not have been able to access without its help.

"We sell light bulbs so on the face of it, why would The Garden Centre Group wish to talk to us?

"This meeting allows us to identify an opportunity however - for a seasonal in-store promotion - and to establish a further possible promotional opportunity after that.

"It also ensured that we got the details of our project team to the right person within TGCG, potentially opening doors for future projects, benefiting both parties. I would recommend BHETA membership to other companies without hesitation."

BHETA's home improvement sector director, Peter Stone, added: "Yet again, the winning Meet the Buyer formula proved successful with some very productive meetings, not only for Kosnic, but also for some of our increasing number of garden members like Bord na Mona UK and Steadypost."

BHETA's next Meet the Buyer event is with The Range and will take place on June 17 at the Future Inn Hotel at Plymouth International Business Park.