DCS Group, a distributor of health, beauty and household brands, has kicked off a campaign to help wholesalers and retailers drive more Christmas gift sales in the lead up to the 2021 festive period.
The DCS Christmas Gifting webinar took place over two days at the end of January. Guest speaker Sarah Ward, Managing Director of the British Allied Trades Federation and previously CEO of the Gifting Association started the session. A number of major brands working with DCS, including P&G, Unilever, Beiersdorf, Colgate, T2 and Childs Farm, took advantage of dedicated webinar sessions to showcase their 2021 gifting products directly to wholesalers and retailers.
The Christmas Gifting interactive sales meeting has been a key event in the DCS Group calendar for many years, but this is the first time it has been held via a video conference. The webinar was attended by 36 DCS wholesaler and retailer customers.
Matt Stanton, Head of Category and Insight at DCS Group, said: “It has been fantastic to see so many of our valued partners joining us to kick off the 2021 campaign. The Q4 festive period is such an important time for businesses that it is crucial we start early and help our wholesaler and retailer customers get a head start.”
Content presented during the event included insight into the latest retail and gifting trends, Christmas shopping habits, and detailed overviews of each brand’s 2021 gifting strategies and products. In her opening address, Ward explained that early execution of in-store gifting plans is more important than ever. “We saw shoppers starting their Christmas shopping earlier than usual in 2020. Retailers who launched their in-store activation early were able to capitalise whereas those starting later were negatively impacted. The presence of gifts in store triggers the Christmas shopping behaviour in shoppers,” she said.
“Whilst there is still uncertainty about the future, the best way for wholesalers and retailers to plan is to treat the occasion as business-as-usual.”
The next DCS webinar will be held on 4 February, covering the latest in lockdown trends and shopper behaviours, and showing how wholesalers and retailers can maximise their businesses by stocking the right range of household, health, beauty and baby care products.
