It’s Beeginning to look a lot like Christmas as we look back on 2023

Firstly, from all us Bees, may we wish you and yours a fantastic festive season.

As we approach the end of another year, we look back on 12 months of dynamic developments. The time has certainly flown by.

On a global scale, it’s not all been positive progress, with political unrest dominating headlines. Christmas time for the hundreds of thousands affected is not lost on the Bees.

From a business standpoint, we can look back on the past year with great pride, as our efforts and reputation continue to be recognised on an even greater scale.

Notable mentions: After a short hiatus, 2023 saw the return of Kramer to the Bees Buzz client portfolio. We are delighted to once again be supporting their EMEA marketing team and have achieved some impressive results as we dovetail with Kramer’s excellent team in Amsterdam. Indeed, after just the initial three months, Bees Buzz have ensured Kramer are obtaining the leading share of voice over its competitors across EMEA – something we have proved with numerous clients time and time again.

Datapath are another Bees Buzz client that’s enjoyed strong growth throughout the past year. The developments to its Aetria solution for Control Rooms has seen 100s of headlines across the world and, with projects aplenty now coming online, it’s certainly been a productive time for case studies! Attending Datapath’s Channel Partner Conference in September gave us insight into what we can expect in 2024 and the future is exciting indeed. Our close relationship with Datapath now enters its eighth year and the fact that we have never been busier, along with a digital presence that is stronger than ever, is testament to the company’s great people and their ambitions.

For another of our key clients – PPDS, the exclusive global provider of Philips Professional Displays – the results this year have been beyond impressive, once again surpassing all coverage records with each article crafted at Bees Buzz. PR is, of course, just one element of what makes a product stand out above its competitors, but PPDS now ranks as the second biggest provider of professional displays across Europe and has also made huge market gains in North America in 2023. 2024 is already looking like another exciting year in the company’s continued growth and evolution. 

PSNI Global Alliance are another valued client who have been in the ascendancy during this year. Now boasting the largest global footprint of any AV alliance in the world, PSNI offer the combined expertise of 110+ certified solution providers – in every key City in the world – to bring a wholly unique level of support to global projects.

Elsewhere at the Hive, we have seen an office refit, an 86-inch interactive screen installed (thank you Hotensify!) and even a treadmill to accompany our hydraulic ‘standing’ desk.

We’ve welcomed work experience students to help further their career and Michael has welcomed a new Akita puppy – Mika – into the Garwood household.

Add to that numerous industry events, awards, conferences, training sessions and countless virtual meetings and webinars and it’s no wonder the year has flown by. AV technology continues to move at pace, and we don’t progress together by standing still.

Yes, it can be frantic at times and the deadlines never stop, but we really do love what we do. We feel blessed to work with so many terrific people in this industry. There are times when we wish we could have more time with everyone in it, which is why we savour opportunities like ISE to catch up. If you see the Bees in Barcelona, please be sure to say hi!

For now, it is time to relax and recharge. To cherish the time with family and friends.

To all who have read this far, thank you, and a Merry Christmas and a healthy, peaceful and prosperous New Year to you.

Stuart Hillis

Owner and MD, Bees Buzz Public Relations