Glen Sabin, managing director of Polypipe, and Shanker Patel, chief executive officer of the Lords Group have been confirmed as two of the speakers taking part in a stimulating Industry Forum at the BMF All-Industry Conference in Budapest in June 2017.
The Industry Forum is a unique feature of the BMF All-Industry Conference. The format enables delegates from every sector of the industry to debate the key business issues of the day. The session begins with topical presentations from industry leaders who bring a broad range of experience to the debate.
Of the first two to be named, Mr Sabin will give a suppliers’ view, while Mr Patel will draw on his involvement with one of London’s leading family-owned builders’ merchants, Lords.
Mr Sabin has a long and distinguished career in building products manufacturing and construction. After an early career with Wimpey and Redland, he spent 22 years in a variety of sales, commercial, business development and marketing roles at Marshalls. He is currently managing director of Polypipe’s plumbing and drainage division, having been a member of the company’s executive team for 12 years.
Mr Patel never planned a career in merchanting. He intended to be a lawyer, but after graduating during the early 1990s recession he was drawn into the family business only to discover it was on the brink of insolvency. Since becoming managing director in 1997 and chief executive officer in 2010, he has turned the merchanting business around and diversified the group’s holdings to encompass manufacturing, distribution, retail, real estate, e-commerce and care homes, growing an annual turnover to £50m in the process. Not content with this, the business aims to double its sales within the next five years.
Speaking about the two speakers, John Newcomb, managing director of the BMF, said: “With political upheaval both in Europe and across the Atlantic, our conference theme of ‘Change, Challenge and Opportunity’ could not be more appropriate. We are all coming to terms with how these macro changes will affect our business, and I’m delighted we have been able to confirm two very different speakers to help set the agenda for our Industry Forum. A third speaker will be announced shortly, along with a high profile moderator for the debate, making this a truly unmissable session for conference delegates.”
The BMF All-Industry Conference takes place in Budapest from 15-18 June, 2017 at the Intercontinental Hotel. Broadcaster and TV personality, Gethin Jones, will host the event, which has already sold out. Further details are available on the conference website, which can be found at: www.bmfconference2017.co.uk.
