There are only a few hours left to go until Glee - the UK’s biggest garden product buying opportunity - opens its doors here at the NEC, and there is excitement in the air.

Several hundred suppliers, large and small, British and international, are busy putting the finishing touches to their new product displays, ready to impress the thousands of buyers who will be flocking through the doors in the next three days.

Working with our exhibitors as they prepare for Glee I have been able to see for myself many of the truly exciting new innovations that are being launched here at the show. The very best of these will be collectively displayed in our new Shop Window area in Hall 4; the ideal first stop for any retailer looking for best-selling new ranges for 2013.

We also have several other special new visitor features designed to help garden centres and other retailers do better business in these challenging times. A new Food and Catering Zone, sponsored by Vision Commercial Kitchens, includes both exhibitors and a daily programme of live demonstrations to help you optimise the growing profit opportunities offered by café and food sales.  

You can take a walk through our fascinating Trend Tunnel, designed by trend forecasters WGSN, demonstrating how to tap into current consumer trends with effective merchandising and point-of-sale. You’ll also find invaluable, business-minded advice at our Knowledge Hub seminars and workshops, or by joining one of our expert-led new Guided Tours around the show.

Added to the thousands of exciting products, brands and suppliers that are waiting to be discovered here, Glee is without doubt the year’s single most effective chance to grow your business and get ahead of the competition. So make sure you invest a day or more to make the most of it: the show is open Monday – Wednesday this week, from 9:00am.

See you here soon!

Nick Davison

Show director