The British Toy & Hobby Association hosted yet another great Industry Day yesterday, bringing together members from across the toy industry for updates (including future plans on DreamToys), The Toy Trust monies raised so far this year, and also for the chance to catch up and network.
The BTHA Outstanding Contribution Awards which were presented to Wendy Phillips, Jerry Burnie OBE and Eric Edmonds MSc RSci MRSB ERT. The trio were recognised for their exceptional work in creating and developing the BTHA Chemical Dashboard and Substance Toolkit, an industry-leading resource that has transformed how BTHA members navigate complex chemical legislation. Congratulations to you all.
The first guest speaker was Hugh Ayling, Partner at KPMG, who shared some sobering but valuable insights into strategy, growth and evolving consumer behaviours, offering practical perspectives on navigating multiple market challenges and identifying where consumer spend is going and more importantly, isn’t.
This was followed by Professor Sir Jonathan Van-Tam MBE (Former Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England) who delivered a really and inspiring keynote on leadership, communication, and public health, giving us the scientific insight on his experiences as Deputy Chief Medical Officer during the COVID-19 pandemic and the lessons learned from navigating a crisis). Whatever your opinion on Covid, he sure did have a tough job navigating the residing government against what he believed were the right measures to protect as many people as possible.
Our special thanks to all the team at the BTHA for putting on this great day and getting everyone across the industry together.
There will be a full indepth report in our August issue.
