The Retail Office attended the Durham University Supplier Exhibition in our very own Earth Sciences building at the Science Site.

This was a chance for lots of suppliers to set up stalls and promote their products and services to any staff members that came along. Suppliers ranged from the Marriott and Radisson Hotels to Arco Safety Experts, Sarstedt lab equipment and Enterprise Car Hire.

Our stall was there mainly to show we do more than just sell stuff online.   A huge part of our role is to provide a service to all departments and colleges in the university, both academic and administrative.  We supply products at their cost price to internal departments. So if a guest lecturer is visiting and you need a thank you gift, the retail office has many Durham University branded gift items available for just that purpose.

Beyond this, we also make bespoke products for departments and colleges.  Examples range from Josephine Butler Moles and University College Bears to branded T-shirts and branded weepuls.  We have a range of suppliers that can pretty much do anything! USBs, Pens, Foam Hands.  You name it, we can source it!

Aside from being a very informative exhibition fair there was also a free lunch provided for which the catering service should be thanked.  It was very welcome and wonderfully received by all involved.  The Procurement team put on a fantastic fair and got us all talking to each other and provided staff with the opportunity to put faces to names!

To spread the Retail Office products as much as possible, I went around each of the stalls and photographed every supplier with the Durham University Bear!

Some of the best pictures that went onto our Instagram and Twitter accounts have been included in this blog.  Follow us to make sure you don’t miss out on more!