[unable to retrieve full-text content]A communique has been signed by the permanent five members of the UNSC plus Gerrmany, Kuwait and Sweden underlining support for the UN-led Yemen peace prcoess.
A natural pet products company based in Maidenhead, Berkshire has just secured a new international contract with a Canadian pet supplies company which is set to increase its annual turnover by 20% to £2.4 million.
Founded in 2006 by three ex-athletes with a passion for pets, Pet Podium Products develops and manufactures a Wellbeing and Grooming range for domestic animals which includes aloe-enriched shampoo bars, soothing balms and odour eliminating candles.
The new deal will see the company’s complete Wellbeing and Grooming range stocked in 600 PetSmart stores across Canada with this expected to extend to the chain’s American stores as well. The company’s flagship product Dog Rocks – a natural solution to prevent dog urine marks on grass, is already being sold across the 1500 PetSmart stores in the United States.
The Department for International Trade (DIT) has been supporting Pet Podium Products since 2012 with exporting advice, market reports and trade show access grants.
Exporting was an important part of our business strategy from the very beginning. It was a no brainer as the North American market is huge with plenty of opportunity for a business like us.
International contract wins are always exciting, and to be able to say that we have a relationship with all the major pet buyers in the United States and Canada is something that we are quite proud of.
DIT has been a great sounding board over the years and were instrumental in our 2016 Queen’s Award for Enterprise. When we were new to market, they provided us with grants to attend trade shows which really was the catalyst to our overseas success. We are very proud to have worked with DIT extensively.
Pet Podium Products employs around half a dozen people in Berkshire and outsources elements such as warehousing, digital media and consultancy. The company has an annual turnover of over £2 million, with exporting accounting for 65% of this. Its biggest markets are currently the United States and Canada, with the company looking to the Asia Pacific and Australasia markets to further expand its exports.
Pet Podium Products is a great example of a business in the South East that has been able to tap into the demand for British products overseas, and their international success should be inspiration for other UK companies.
We look forward to supporting the company as it looks to expand its exports in new markets and further showcase what British businesses can do on a global stage.
I would encourage other businesses in the region that are considering overseas trade for the first time, or looking to increase their international footprint, to get in touch. We have a dedicated team of International Trade Advisers based in the South East and specialists in 109 countries worldwide.
Businesses looking for support should call 0330 300 0012 or email info@tradesoutheast.com. They can also visit great.gov.uk which has information on live export opportunities and includes general information on exporting and events.
The global baby product sector is booming, creating international opportunities for UK companies to capitalise on. According to recent research the global market for baby products is expected to reach $16.78 billion by 2025* and consumers across the world are increasingly turning to new innovative UK baby brands that they can trust.
One UK baby product business, N2M Ltd, only launched its game-changing baby rocker, Rockit, two years ago and is already finding success in over 40 countries worldwide.
The Bristol-based business recently secured an export deal with a new distributor in the United States which will see 4,000 Rockits sold via various retailers including Buy Buy Baby. The business has also found recent success in Germany, landing a new distribution deal which will see Rockits sold in BabyWalz, BabyMarkt and Jako-o stores across the country. Combined sales projections for these export wins over the next five years is expected to exceed seven figures.
This is a British business that is setting the pace for other UK companies to follow, by expanding its export markets and showing that it will be ready to trade after Brexit.
It is because of the creativity and innovative instincts of these British entrepreneurs that babies across the globe are sleeping peacefully and is proof that UK businesses have so much to offer the world.
The company was founded by three dads in 2016 when acoustics and vibration engineer, Nick Webb invented a baby rocker which attaches to pushchairs after his three-month old daughter was struggling to fall asleep in her pram. Nick showed his invention to brother-in-law Matt Dyson and friend Matt Sparrow, and over the next year they turned the prototype into a commercial product, and the Rockit was born.
The trio launched Rockit at Kind + Jugend 2017 in Cologne, Germany – a trade show showcasing the best new products and innovations for babies and toddlers, with the Department for International Trade (DIT) supporting the company with Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP) funding and market research ahead of the event. As a result, Rockit is now sold in John Lewis, Argos, Mothercare and JoJo Maman online in the UK, and the company received large orders from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Taiwan and Israel, jump-starting its export journey.
There was nothing quite like Rockit on the market and we wanted to capitalise on this by being first to market in numerous territories as quickly as possible.
Now exports have really taken off and our turnover in the first five months of this year is almost what we achieved in the previous twelve months.
We have received lots of support from DIT during our export journey, and our International Trade Advisors have really been instrumental in our global success.
Now, not only does the company supply Rockits to more than 100 independent nursery retailers and larger chain stores throughout the UK, but 40,000 of its baby rockers have been shipped worldwide and are being used by parents and carers in over 40 countries including Hong Kong, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. On Thursday (19 September), Rockit was back at the Kind + Jugend Nursery Fair in Cologne, launching a much-anticipated new product, Zed. The Spaceman shaped design is placed on a cot or bed mattress and produces relaxing vibrations to help babies and toddlers drift off to sleep.
Last year the company’s annual turnover was £290,000 with exporting accounting for 57% of this. Turnover is expected to increase by at least 100% by the end of the year due to the business’s rapidly growing exports, with the company looking to hire new staff members at its Bristol HQ.
In recognition of its export achievements, N2M was selected to be an Export Champion by DIT in March, joining the nationwide Export Champion Community of companies acting as ambassadors for overseas trade, offering practical advice and tips to other businesses. Since becoming an Export Champion, N2M has been involved in a variety of trade profiling activities, including speaking at an Ecommerce event and participating in business roundtable discussions.
As the global demand for British Gin continues to grow, with the UK exporting £617.7 million worth of the tipple last year, distillers across the UK are tapping into the international opportunities in the alcohol industry.
GinKing, an alcohol producer based in Dorking, Surrey has just secured a new £90,000 export win with a wine merchant in the United States and is set to increase its annual turnover by 10% as a result.
The UK ‘ginassaince’ is booming with companies like GinKing driving its success and capitalising on the global demand for quality British-made alcohol.
Distillers across the country should be grasping these international opportunities and showing the rest of the world that the UK is ready to trade.
Founded in 2017, Ginking broke the mould with its unique sparkling alcoholic beverage that blends quality wine sourced from local South of England vineyards and a unique London Dry Gin.
The new deal will see the company’s lower alcohol product stocked in roughly 350 Cost Plus World Market stores across the United States through wine merchant and importer Plume Ridge.
The Department for International Trade (DIT) helped the company to secure a grant to attend Prowein, a wine exhibition in Germany and meet with the US importer.
The recent US deal is a really exciting step for us on our exporting journey. Being a very young company, our turnover is always increasing, and exports are an integral part of this growth, currently accounting for 12% of total sales.
DIT has helped our small business to grow internationally with useful face-to-face meetings, introductions to UK embassies, industry data on various markets and of course this grant which indirectly led to securing the US deal.
Exporting is an obvious way of diversifying risk and I would encourage other UK companies to contact DIT and see how they can support with overseas growth.
Although Ginking was only founded 2 years ago, its turnover is expected to reach £1 million by the end of this financial year, and the producer has already found success in other international markets.
Consumers across Switzerland, Germany, Iceland, Austria and Canada are currently sipping on the gin and wine beverage as the company plans to further expand into Australia with support from DIT.
As well as the growing gin market, GinKing’s product has also allowed the company to capitalise on the burgeoning English wine industry, with experts predicting that exports of the British-made fizz could reach £350 million by 2040.
The visit follows up on the arrival in Congress one week ago of the UK – Central America Association Agreement, sent by the Executive and which became the Law Initiative 56-14. The bill is due to enter the plenary once the Economics Committee gives its favourable views on the Agreement, upon consultation with many other actors.
Congressman Carlos Barreda, President of the Economics and Foreign Trade Committee, chaired the meeting. BritCham was joined by a delegation composed of the British Embassy, the Ministry of Economy, representatives of the Guatemalan private sector and exporters to the UK.
The meeting was an opportunity for delegates to explain to Congress how this new trade agreement will give seamless continuity to Guatemalan exports to the UK reckoned at more than US$100 million a year and which generates many jobs in the countryside, especially in the harvest of fruits, vegetables, sugar and coffee.
For example, some Guatemalan companies export 100% of their fruit and vegetables production to the UK, i.e. green peas, berries, green beans, avocado, mangos, etc., which most are harvested in large plantation areas of Chimaltenango, Sacatepequez, Escuintla, Verapaces, and other parts of the country. Their products reach supermarkets in the UK and distributors that re-sell to the rest of Europe. UK emblematic products including whisky, pharmaceuticals and tech goods will also enter Guatemala with low tariffs.
The Agreement will ensure continued trade with Central America after the UK leaves the European Union on 31st October. The delegation also explained that the Pact provides a framework for assistance and development through political dialogue, economic cooperation, and future work on important issues like the environment and human rights.
BritCham stressed that it will continue working with Guatemalan and British companies to assess them in the transit to this new trade pact, which is a continuity of the Association Agreement between the EU and Central America. The British Embassy’s Trade Office also stands ready to attend enquiries during this transition process.
Norman Laxton, President of BritCham, said:
We urge Congress to speed up the approval of this Agreement. It will ensure Guatemalan businesses and consumers benefit from continued trade with the United Kingdom after the 31st of October. It will also open the door for more investments and projects that will deliver on our mutual objective of spurring prosperity and reduce poverty.