Following recent investment in a new transportable exhibition stand, UPU Industries has taken to the road, showcasing its product range at various trade and agricultural shows across Ireland and GB. International Sales Director for UPU, Gary Millar looks back at UPU’s ‘show-stopping’ season…
“Trade and agricultural shows form a key part of our overall sales and business strategy, as our participation in these shows is paramount in raising brand awareness. With this in mind, we developed a stand that would help us engage with prospective customers, and highlight the potential of our product range.
The revamped stand includes newly designed and printed graphics focusing on Farmer’s and our ‘Big Bale Solutions’ tag-line and has three bespoke units showcasing – Farmer’s Net Wrap, Farmer’s Twine and Farmer’s Silograss Film. This allows visitors to see and examine the product first-hand, which helps encourage interest and ultimately, drive sales. With the first cut of silage imminent, our priority is ensuring farmers have high quality products, which are reliable and consistent. The exhibition season, gives us the chance to demonstrate the virtues of the range, and reach visitors from across the UK and Ireland.
We kicked off the year at The Lamma Show in January, a key date in the machinery trade calendar, as it was the first national agricultural show post-Brexit, and provided a great opportunity to engage with prospective customers from the East of England and beyond. We headed to Peterborough at the end of January, joining over 900 exhibitors. A busy show, with over 40,000 visitors passing through the gates, it generated a lot of business leads, and positive guest feedback – in particular, our on-stand hospitality was a real hit, complete with Farmer’s branded coffee cups, adding a personal touch to our exhibition area.
In February, it was a double whammy as we exhibited at two shows. First on the agenda, was the Ernst Doe Show in Essex, where our UK Sales Manager, Simon Hickey took charge. Ernst Doe is one of our trusted partners, stocking our products across its branches in Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire. With the potential reach of 10,000 visitors, it was a great opportunity to raise our profile and have face to face interaction in the south east of England.
We swiftly moved onto The FTMTA Farm Machinery Show in Punchestown. The Irish market remains a priority for UPU, with our products available across the island. The FTMTA’s members are involved in manufacturing, distribution, retail sales and servicing farm machinery – meaning it covers a cross-section of potential users for UPU. It proved to be an excellent networking opportunity for Noel Merrick, UPU’s Business Development Manager, Ireland.
Next on the agenda for UPU, is the upcoming Grassland and Muck Show in May in Stoneleigh, Warwickshire. The mammoth event, covers 190 acres, and is specifically targeted at the grassland farmer, a key user of our products, and we look forward to ‘covering’ it!”
