Vendman’s ‘In Pursuit of Excellence‘ event was ‘a unique gathering of the UK’s leading independent vending operators.’
BY IAN REYNOLDS-YOUNG
Vendman’s ‘gamble’, of eschewing AVEX 2015 in favour of creating an event of its own, ‘In Pursuit of Excellence’, paid off – and some.
Arranged over two days at the lavish Welcombe Hotel in Stratford-upon-Avon, ‘In Pursuit of Excellence’ was a unique gathering of the UK’s leading independent vending operators. They came from across the UK and from Europe to reflect on ‘excellence’; what it means, how to recognise it and how to deliver it.
What stood out immediately as the delegates checked in was that the invitations were ‘plus one’, so wives / husbands / partners were in tow. The presence of ‘other halves’, within the context of such a luxurious venue, lent to the whole gathering the feel of an up-market wedding reception, rather than a ‘corporate’ do – which is exactly the effect Vendman MD Rob Little wanted to achieve.
‘They say ‘you should never mix business with pleasure’, Rob said, ‘but I say, ‘why not?’ There are dozens of opportunities throughout the year for vending operators to get together (and some of the ensuing ‘lads nights out’ have been memorable); but we wanted our event to be as much a ‘social’ as a ‘conference’.
‘We didn’t want to ram Vendman down people’s throats. We wanted our customers to understand that we’re never complacent, that we’re constantly pushing at the edges of what we do, always trying to do it better, just like they are. That’s why we called the event, ‘In Pursuit of Excellence’. We’re like our customers in that we’re all on a journey towards excellence and we’re all trying to eliminate the things that stand in the way of excellence.’
The afternoon session consisted of a number of speakers sharing their thoughts on the topic. However, aside from his duties as Master of Ceremonies, Rob was notable by his absence as a speaker. In his place, Nathan Little proved to be a clear, concise, informative and entertaining communicator, with an encyclopaedic knowledge of his subject and an infectious enthusiasm.
Those guest speakers taking part included vending stalwarts Graham Kingaby, Brian Tustain and Dave Ward, (whose closing image will live long in the memory), plus Tim Bennet of Access; Yours Truly and – we’ve kept the best until last – racehorse trainer Ian Williams.
Mr. Williams trains Vendman’s own horse, ‘Mr. Vendman’ and his account of his adventures in pursuit of equine excellence had the audience in stiches. His tour de force, at the end of his remarks, was to give way to live television for a race involving a horse from his stables. Amidst great fanfare and huge expectations, the horse, unfortunately, trailed in last.
It was a timely reminder that we might expect a few diversions and hold-ups along the way…
In the evening, dinner was a delight and the entertainment, from the versatile group Kirsty Almeida & The Troubadours, backed by host Barrie John, really was superb. (The toughest decision of the evening was whether to dance to the music or to gape, open-mouthed, at the excellence of the musicians…)
The following day saw a bleary-eyed tee-off on a beautiful morning for the golfers, whilst back at the hotel, a few hours of leisurely pampering was preferred option for many of the others.
As the final guest checked out at the end of what had been an epic couple of days, Rob and his team had earned the right to take a breather, reflect on the event and to deem it a huge success, as the ensuing comments from attendees confirmed.
Vendman’s strategy in 2015 might have been considered risky by outsiders, but judging by the number of ‘insiders’ gathered together for ‘In Pursuit of Excellence’, it’s been indubitably vindicated.
