This year’s Nemo Refresh conference revisited the Slaley Hall Hotel, Northumberland, and once again reaffirmed the special relationship Nemo has with its suppliers.
The weekend saw strong attendance from full members, plus a good number of the groups Evolve members and a huge turnout from exhibitors. The annual golf tournament started proceedings, followed by a split of afternoon activities; archery, axe throwing, segways and the popular blind driving.
Friday evening’s superhero theme was completed with live entertainment from performances from Ben Sings and Adam McCulloch after a generous buffet.
Saturday morning saw members get expert advice on the opportunities in paper from Antalis, followed by how ergonomics is a key area of opportunity from Fellowes and an introduction to Brothers new range of SMB machines, perfect for this market.
Members and suppliers were then treated to a superhero team up by speakers Geoff Ramm and Nigel Risner, who inspired delegates to create the perfect day and how key it is to have strong reliable partners they can work with.
Business continued with the exhibition and the event finished with the Gala Awards and Dinner on Saturday evening, where guests enjoyed a luxurious three course meal at the black-tie event. Entertainment was provided by band, Groove Central Station, followed by Olympic legend, Eddie The Eagle, whose lovable charm and admirable life story kept guest entertained.
Attendees were very generous with their fundraising for Nemo’s chosen charity: Alzheimer’s Research raising a massive £1209 on the Saturday night alone. The 2019 Gala Awards followed, recognising the achievements throughout the year.
This year’s winners were:
- Best New Product – All in Box, Brother UK
- Best Stand of Show – Spicers
- Vendor of the Year – Dams
- Style Brand Award – Chariot Office Supplies
- Account Manager of the Year – Matt Aldcroft, Dams
- Wholesale of the Year – Spicers
- Dealer Excellence Award – Paper House Plus
- Dealer of the Year - Miles Shepherd
Tim Beaumont, Nemo MD congratulated all the winners on the night and thanked all the delegates, Nemo Members and staff who helped to make the weekend such an enjoyable, successful and positive one.
Richard Smithers, Account Director at Spicers said, “I am always pleased to attend their conference, its informative, professional in terms of business agenda, involves relaxed networking like the golf and activities on Friday, and Superhero themed dinner. Exhibiting at the Nemo's conference is always a pleasure, seeing so many dealers in one place supporting the conference is one of the reasons we attend.”
Callum Edwards, Marketing Manager at Prima Software said, “we really enjoyed the family environment of the Nemo community. We look forward to the event every year. For us Refresh is a must attend event.”
Lee D’Arcy-Jones, Sales Director at Inksolve.com, a recent new member added, “if increasing business and finding friends within Nemo can be this much fun, we will grab every opportunity to do it again with both hands. Roll on 2020.”
Following its recent merger, Nemo and Office Club have announced they will be holding a joint conference and exhibition next year between 26-27th June 2020.
