Francesc Egea, of IPE Innovaciones Para Etiquetajes, Spain and chairman of YMC summed up the clear messages of the event succinctly when he said: “There is a lot of change around our industry today – changing technology, changing end user markets, new economies, and changing customer needs.   We have to be flexible, and adapt our companies accordingly.”

But what did the delegates think? “The content was fantastic, focusing on key skills and unique ideas on how to drive our businesses forward,” commented Matthew Burton, AB Graphic International. “This made it relevant to all attendees, whether they are suppliers, converters, or press people, by focusing on developing skill sets rather than new technologies or innovations within the industry.”

Aside from the opportunity for networking Brian Hurst of Yerecic Label was impressed by the relevance of the business sessions that provided ‘take-homes’ for all and Alex Elezaj from Whitlam Label Company stated "the discussions surrounding global business issues with such a fine group of individuals were really beneficial."

“Not only were the challenges of upcoming markets discussed, but techniques of how to solve them; and opportunities were highlighted,” commented Pawandeep Sahni, Weldon Celloplast. While Radovan Kilarsky of  Purgina said: “The topics of the presentations were accurate, very interesting, and motivating.  I believe the next YMC Global Congress will be as successful as this and I cannot wait to take part!”

Evolving to meet changing markets

The Young Managers Club was created by FINAT - the European association for the self-adhesive label industry - for industry managers under-40. Initially it was focused on succession planning within the many industry SMEs. It has since evolved to encompass meetings and topical workshops.

Mr Egea explained: "With the YMC we are recognizing how important it is for young managers to understand the global influences on the industry and how they can align their business to these changing requirements. Essential to this is being able to connect with their peers in the labeling industry from around the world. There are so many interesting young global citizens and professionals out there and collectively we are highly educated, ambitious and excited about the future.”

“The next generation sure looks bright with this calibre of leaders,“ concluded congress attendee Tania Mathias of Fantastick Label Co. And Jürgen Scheiblehner of Delfort Group said: “It is very important to develop the young generation within FINAT to secure a successful future for the association – and the industry.”