NL – As usual, the Dutch publishing company, Het Portaal Media, and the Dutch association, PPP (Promotional Products Professionals), invited the industry to their trade show in Houten at the beginning of autumn on September 4 and 5, 2024. Previously known as De Leveranciersdagen, the show is now called The Supplier Days – among others to do justice to the international standing of the event.
The latter is by all means justified: “We are delighted that we had more visitors, above all from Germany, this year,” stated John Swaab, General Director of Het Portaal. Over the two days, in total 1,602 visitors attended the event at the premises of the Expo Houten (2023: 1,434) to let themselves be inspired by the according to the organisers “biggest autumn show of the promotional products industry”.
More than 200 exhibitors from 17 countries exhibited this year. Due to the growth in the number of exhibitors, the show was spread over two halls for the first time, which made the show appear even more expansive and spacious.
Furthermore, the visitors – the show was open to suppliers, importers, distributors and promotional products agencies – were able to enjoy a broad spectrum of exciting novelties and classics. There was something to suit all tastes – from textiles, to notebooks, through to body care items and snacks. Small campaigns were held at several stands: For example, NoName Textiles had brought a wheel of fortune and many prizes with them. “We have two main prizes, 25 beach towels or 50 pairs of socks that can be individualised for the winners,” reported Manon Ligtvoet. “We wanted to address the visitors in a different way, i.e. with the wheel of fortune, and it is working very well so far.” Michel Hofste from Araco was also more than satisfied with his stand campaign: “We brought 300 caps with us that visitors could have embroidered at Elinco’s stand. The last ones are just being snapped up now. The visitors are in high spirits and even if the show seems slightly emptier because of the two halls, we are holding a lot of good discussions.”
The MoPA (Museum of Promotional Articles), which celebrated its premiere at the PSI Show in January and then carried on to the HAPTICA® live in March, now caused a stir in the Netherlands: The exhibition on the history of haptic advertising that was initiated by Cybergroup International stopped off at the Supplier Days for two days during its tour round Europe and fascinated the visitors with exciting exhibits.
Whilst many of the exhibitors have already been regular guests at the Supplier Days for several years, there were also several newcomers again this year. The HAPTICA® live team were also represented with a stand for the first time. Project Manager, Till Barth, explained why: “We are taking advantage of the opportunity to attract the attention of exhibitors to the HAPTICA® live, who are not yet that familiar with the show. At our stand, which reflects the feeling of the ‘Experience of Haptic Advertising’, we inform the guests about our show and its unique visitor profile, which is particularly very interesting for international exhibitors, who would like to gain a foothold on the German market.” In addition, the visitors were able to inform themselves about the advertising options in the magazines of WA Media while sampling a cold Kölsch – a beer speciality from Cologne, the hometown of WA Media.
Laura Hahn from Die Stadtgärtner was also happy with her debut at the show: “Our stand here is nice and spacious, which fits in very well with our products, of course. The show is very pleasant and is excellent for establishing new contacts in the Netherlands.” The Carry Bottles team also celebrated its first appearance at the event. “It was a little quiet at our stand on Wednesday, which isn’t a bad thing, because it meant we were able to hold more intense discussions and present our novelties in detail,” concluded Emilie Kempert.
Following tradition, the Night of the PromZ was celebrated at the end of the first exhibition day. Awards for the best distributors, suppliers and online distributors were presented during the party, which was attended by approx. 450 guests. New Wave Textiles (Specialist), Araco International (as Multi-specialist) and XD Connects (Generalist) were voted winners in the category “Suppliers”. In the “Distributors” category, Robitex and the Kick And Rush Group won in the rubric “Overall Performance”, IGO-Promo was able to assert itself in the “Best Online Performance” segment. Finally, the PromZ Award for the best newcomer went to Monday Merch.
Both the exhibitors and visitors were satisfied with the show and the organisers also drew a positive balance: “We are above all very happy about the growth of the show, but the party was really good too. We hope to continue on the same track,” is how Swaab summed up the two days in Houten. //Sophia Arnold
Photos: Sophia Arnold, Till Barth, Helen Lorenz © WA Media
