Source Home & Gift’s opening day yesterday proved retailers are looking for responsibly and sustainably made products.
Running parallel to Autumn Fair, Source Home & Gift offers a diverse showcase of homewares, furniture, gifts, toys, textiles, packaging, and stationery and greetings producers and manufacturers from countries including Peru, South Korea, Portugal, the Philippines, Egypt, Nepal, China, and India.
The debut Makers section, offering a dedicated space for artisan craftspeople, was well-received with visitors keen to learn about the products and maker’s stories. The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) joined forces with Source Home & Gift to present live demonstrations in the Indian Pavilion capturing the authenticity and diversity of India’s craftspeople. Representing manufacturers and exporters of handicrafts from all over India, EPCH has positioned India as a sourcing destination for the best in hand-crafted gifts and lifestyle products.
Madhya Pradesh Association of Women Entrepreneurs (MAWE) (pictured) proved popular with visitors. ‘We have received a good response to all our handcrafted products by our women entrepreneurs. We find the customers we want to at Source Home & Gift,’ says Archana Bhatnagar, MAWE chair and founder.
Bringing Peruvian crafts to life, Sumaq Qara from Lima is dedicated to the production of handmade, authentic, eco-friendly and quality textile crafts for the international market, committed to promoting good practices of fair trade, care for the environment in our community, and empowering female victims of terrorism and domestic violence.
‘There’s been a fantastic feeling of positivity during the opening day. Source Home & Gift is a show of two halves, championing beautiful high-quality products from artisan makers in India and Peru, and some really fantastic products from industrial powerhouses like China. The breadth and depth and quality of product on show in Source Home & Gift is unparalleled for a responsible sourcing show. It makes for a very compelling offering for our audience. The awareness in the buying community of what Source Home & Gift offers is continuing to strengthen as we continue to bring variety and as they appreciate the quality of the products on offer,’ says Suzanne Ellingham, Source Home & Gift director of sourcing.
‘Looking around Source Home & Gift is a trigger, you can specify your needs to suit your requirements, and the exhibitors can react to these. You can initiate relationships to build on after the show. There is a good representation of core Chinese Industries here,’ says Vikram Avasthi, homeware retailer Homescapes owner.
‘We have had an excellent day, the response has been good and we have had orders from new buyers,’ says Sheetal Dhawan, Shreeya Fineries founder.
‘It’s been a very good show, it’s my second time exhibiting at Source Home & Gift. Lots of customers have visited our stand and liked the product. Some want to be our distributor, so we are very happy with our first day here,’ says Hongyan Ni, Hangzhou Shoyi director.
Source Home & Gift and Autumn Fair continue until 4 September at the NEC.
