Position: Product manager for YPO, the UK's largest public sector buying organisation.
What does your role involve?
As a product manager I introduce and develop YPO's early years, sports, music and SEN product ranges. I work with customers through focus groups and visits and ensure the catalogue range suits customers based at nurseries and schools.
How do you source products for the YPO catalogue?
We have annual meetings with our key suppliers, including TTS and LEGO Education Europe, where they present new products. I also visit trade fairs such as the International Toy Fair in Bavaria.
Tell me about the early years range in this year's catalogue.
We have thousands of new products in this year's catalogue and I would say 2011 was our biggest expansion of the early years range, with more than 600 innovative products and 1,000 new lines. They include lots of outdoor play items, role-play construction and messy play products.
Visit www.ypo.co.uk
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