My Slice of Success at Prepaid 2010

It is always such a great source of pride to me how audiences still love to hear about G-T-P’s success with our PizzaExpress Gift Card

I had another occassion to present this case study at the PizzaExpress Gift Card at the Prepaid Conference & Expo (14 – 16 June 2010) , one of Europe’s largest prepaid events.

We again exhibited at the annual event, which this year had an extensive speaker panel and wide range of attendees, but it was the speaking opportunity that I enjoyed the most, sharing the stage with  Andrew Johnson to talk about the PizzaExpress Gift Card case study, which among other things, demonstrated the success of the scheme that resulted in a tenfold increase for the company in 2001.  The PizzaExpress Gift Card was the first of its kind in the UK, an innovation that , as I said am very proud of.

I also took time out with my G-T-P cohorts to lend support to one of ourr clients, Caroline Meechan of The Wave Gift Card.  Caroline, a valued client of G-T-P since 2007, was another of the speakers at the event and presented her case study on the journey she has experienced with her Gift Card.

I am looking forward to next year event already as I truly believe the conference is an important platform for knowledge transfer and relationship building for the prepaid industry.

It Takes More than Volcanic Ash to Keep Me Away from UKGCVA

It took more than volcanic ash clouds to prevent me and the G-T-P team from taking the stage at the UKGCVA Conference.  Despite the majority of flights being grounded by volcanic ash, and a number of speakers and attendees unable to attend, we all made it to London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel, for what I believe was another successful event for G-T-P.

Photo by Fridgeirsson

This year G-T-P sponsored the break-out room and the after drinks reception, the former being a new addition to the event and the venue for some leading international speakers, including Cindy Mielke of JC Penny and Rebekka Rea of the Retail Gift Card Association USA, a real highlight for G-T-P.

I joined two speaker panels alongside some of the most influential people in prepaid.  I was also asked to close the conference on behalf of G-T-P, together with Andrew Johnson, Director General of the UKGCVA.  During my closing speech, I reflected on the tough year that the prepaid industry had experience but I also spoke about my confidence in both G-T-P and the industry we all started to feel the benefits of an upswing in the economy.

According to my cohort Andrew Johnson: “The day wasa huge success and I expect that delegates will have taken a lot of food for thought back to their organisations that will help to shape voucher and gift card strategies for the coming year.  As ever, there is so much going on in this market at the moment with the development of new technologies, introduction of new products and a diverse array of new opportunities – more than we could possible cover in a day! But the conference does continue to provide an important forum to raise debate and discussion as well as inform organisation of all the potential on offer in this lucrative market.  A successful day and enjoyable occasion for all!”