We have been out and about this month, meeting old friends and new
customers. First of all, we were at the Giving and Living Trade Fair at
Exeter, where we met several customers who had come to see our new
ranges. The halls were perhaps not as busy as we would have liked to
see, but a number of new clients came to see us to see what we had to
offer, when planning their purchasing policy for the coming year.

The very next day after the Exeter Fair, we were off on our travels
again to Paris, to the Maison et Objects Trade Exhibition. This is held
in the French equivalent of the National Exhibition Centre, just to the
north of Paris. This is an absolutely huge show, concentrating on the
very upper end of the luxury market. It was surprising to see how many
foreign entries world-wide there were at the show, but all the exhibits
were of the highest quality and most beautifully displayed. One of the
objects of the trip was to take the first steps to appointing an agent
to work for Bristol Blue Glass South West in France. I am very pleased
to say that we have identified two agents, one to work in the Ile de
France and Paris region, and one to cover the South West area of France,
and we are beginning discussions with a view to appointments in the spring.

While in Paris, we had the opportunity of showing samples of our glass
to the Commercial Attaché at the British Embassy, who was astounded at
the quality and design of our products. We also took the opportunity to
show our product to other experienced buyers, and without exception the
reaction was the same, “un range de la plus haute gamme.” In fact, we
almost (but not quite!) got tired of hearing the phrase!

The next day after returning from Paris, we met with two representatives
from the British Embassies in Stockholm and in Copenhagen, who again
were very impressed with the quality of our products. However, we do not
have plans this year to take our glass to Scandinavia, but it is  something we shall bear in mind for the future.