In Brief: The NEC; Midcounties Co-operative; Learning Labs

The NEC cuts a dash by winning back Professional Clothing Show

THE NEC Group has won back a major exhibition from rival venues. The Professional Clothing Show has previously been held at places such as Silverstone and Coventry’s Ricoh Arena, as well as the NEC itself.

The show, which takes place April 1-2, 2014, is the only UK show dedicated entirely to the manufacture and supply of professional clothing, from cutting edge corporate wear to durable work wear and life-saving PPE (personal protective equipment).

Organisers are expecting between 2,000 and 3,000 people to attend the show, where visitors will be able to view new lines and discover more about the buying process.

Yvette Ashby, the Professional Clothing Show’s managing director, said: “It’s wonderful to be returning to the NEC. The facilities are world class and feedback from visitors and exhibitors at our previous events indicates that 2014 is going to be the best event yet, attracting even more visitors and exhibitors from the UK and overseas.”

David Gallagher, the NEC’s New Business Development Manager, added: “This is a really exciting win for the NEC. We have an enviable track record of helping our customers grow their events here and a flagship event such as the Professional Clothing Show belongs at the NEC. We look forward to working together.”

Midcounties Co-operative on the charge with defibrillator scheme 

THE Midcounties Co-operative has launched a groundbreaking new fundraising project to help save lives by working with local communities to install defibrillators at its sites.

The society has pledged to introduce the life-saving devices within its trading areas, particularly in areas that are hard for medical services to reach. The scheme is part of The Midcounties Co-operative’s on-going commitment to support its local community. Society workers will also be raising funds towards the project.

The project sees the society team up with The Community Heartbeat Trust, a leading national charity dedicated to providing defibrillation services to local communities. The charity will support The Midcounties Co-operative by supplying the defibrillators and helping to raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest.

The pilot scheme is being rolled out in Bilston, with a defibrillator set to be installed in the society’s Springvale Sports and Social Club. Local groups Springvale Steelers Football Club, Sunday Night Members, Probus, FRAP, Bilston and Willenhall Lions and Springvale Bowling Club joined forces with The Midcounties Co-operative to collect the money to buy the unit. 

Birmingham start up boosted as Staples agrees UK-wide deal 

A BIRMINGHAM-based technology start-up has been handed a boost after stationery retailer Staples agreed to supply its new foreign language tool.

Learning Labs, based at Innovation Birmingham Campus, has developed FlashSticks, a foreign language vocabulary booster product. The uniquely printed, colour-coded product incorporates 3M’s special Post-it Note technology.

Each note contains a foreign word, translation, visual icon and phonetic to help with pronunciation. The product retails for £5.99, while a free app enables the user to ‘wave’ their smartphone or tablet over any FlashStick to hear the precise pronunciation on a video clip.  

Staples has agreed to stock the product in all 112 of its UK stores. Online retailer Amazon and all 500 WHSmiths stores around the UK already stock the product.

Learning Labs was helped in its development work with £300,000 private equity finance from Midven, Minerva and Finance Birmingham. It has also received support through the Regional Growth Fund.

In the past six months orders have been placed for more than 50,000 FlashSticks and negotiations are also at the advanced stage with school buying groups which would see the product being made widely available for classroom learning and children’s’ homework.

Veejay Lingiah, CEO of Learning Labs said: “FlashSticks is now being widely used across the country by adults and children wanting to learn a new foreign language. We’ve been overwhelmed by its popularity and our team is currently developing a full range of product extensions to add to the existing range.”  

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