If you work in a challenging environment,  and you’re looking for unbreakable promotional plastic mugs and tableware, then  you’ll know they can be hard to find. The Mugstore and Gift Selection however, now offer such products with short lead times and great quality printing.

Finding such products is hard enough, but not only that, you can now have them branded too. If you’re looking for unbreakable mugs, plates, bowls, trays and cutlery, then they are now available in a wide variety of attractive and vibrant colours.

When they say “unbreakable”, they don’t just mean under normal use, like a lot of other distributers will mean. If you just drop say a cup on the floor, then unlike a ceramic mug it won’t break, sure. But more than that, if you smash it against it a wall they won’t break too.

However, they do not mean that the products are literally impossible to break. If you’re a  twenty stone man, and you keep jumping up and down on the products, then they may break yes. If you’re unsure about the strength of these products, by all means ask their friendly team for a sample, so you can be certain that they’d meet your requirements.

Recent research by Leapfrog shows that consumers will be pleased to know their favourite brands are home grown, and business should be keen to show off this fact.

Just over a quarter of people (26%) say they actively support British business because they want to keep money in the country. And 23% worry that if a brand is sold to a foreign company, it will lose its British identity. Understanding a product’s provenance is also a reason for 22% of people to buy British.

When people are out shopping, they like to see British brands on supermarket shelves, says research director Sarah Buckle. “There’s a nostalgia element to these associations – people have grown up with these brands,” she explains.

The research suggests Premier Foods-owned brands such as Hovis, Bisto and Oxo are synonymous with Britain. The UK-owned brands have been known to shoppers for several generations and the fact that they are still based in this country makes them favourites in a super competitive market. It seems we have a real connection with food, as it is food and drink brands that suffer most if they sell up to foreign owners. The survey states that 31% think it would negatively affect a food and drinks business if it was no longer a British company.

This distinction between British and foreign brands is a hazy one. Many brands that have overseas owners are believed to be British, for example 38% believe that Hamleys, which is part-owned by an Iceland bank, is wholly British owned. Buckle says that’s no surprise as the toy store is “synonymous with London”. Land Rover, which is owned by Indian company Tata Group, is also believed to be a British brand by 39% of respondents.

This is clear message that brands should try to remain as authentic as possible, with foreign-owned companies with UK heritage should not be hesitant to market their roots. Although many say they’re not happy Kraft’s takeover of Cadbury, if their British values and image maintain, consumers won’t even notice the change, let alone mind.

If you’re looking to use promotional products as part of your marketing campaign, then speak to Gift Selection about which promotional items are made in the UK. Most promotional items are imported from the Far East, and then personalised here in Britian, but there certain items which are completely made in the UK.

The popular St George promotional mug (see image), is one of the few branded mugs that is completely made and printed here in England. If you want to get your typically British message out on people’s desk, contact the friendly team over at The Mugstore who will be happy to talk mugs!

The home of promotional mugs has revamped its website today – take a look at their shiny new site here.

So what’s new in the world of promotional mugs? The Mugstore is now pushing their promotional corporate gift sets more then they have been. These quality sets are great for businesses large and small, and will give a really sharp corporate feel to one’s organisation.

These corporate sets are made from porcelain, which is a material there really keen on over there. They have a new range of porcelain promotional items, which they’re hoping will be big within the hotel industry. These promotional porcelain items are especially ideal for chains of hotels, since they’re more hard wearing then regular earthenware. Their promotional mugs, saucers and bowls in this range even carry a ‘five year side chip’ guarantee!

If you fancy buying some smart cappuccino or latte promotional mugs, made from some lovely porcelain to have in your own office rather then low cost giveaways, let the friendly team know over at The Mugstore.

Pop music is big business, but Blur’s manager recently issued a word of warning to musicians, against appearing in just any sort of promotion.

In particular Chris Morrison pointed out: “I think Duffy’s Coca-Cola ad was abysmal and I think Robbie Williams on T Mobile was terrible. I don’t think either of those two things did any favours to the artists’ careers or the way they’re perceived. I think you have to be very, very careful about how you associate with brands.

Brit Pop legends Blur themselves have allowed their tracks to be used in commercials, with their 1997 hit Song 2 earning more than 20 times as much money through use in ads, TV shows and film soundtracks than in actual record sales.

Musicians from all genres of the aural spectrum invest heavily in promotional products too. Manchester based DJ & producer Mr Scruff, well known for his love of tea, is one artist to created some promotional mugs from this quality corporate gift supplier.

You can buy all sorts of promotional merchandise direct from his site, including promotional tea cups, T shirts, USB sticks and badges to name just a few.

The leaders of the promotional mug world, The Mugstore, have put the newly added Metro mug on special offer for August. Last month they ran a promotion on Sparta mugs, which has now made way for their latest ceramic addition.

They claim your coffee will taste even nicer, knowing that you got a great deal on your branded Metro mugs. They love promotional Metro mugs so much; they even printed some with their logo on as you can see by their website.

A branded Metro mug is the promotional mug if you’re looking for contemporary mug that will give a professional feel to your organisation. Branded Metro coffee mugs are a quality ceramic mug, with a great print area and are also available with an attractive black glaze if preferred.

There bargain Metro mugs are similar to the popular Cambridge mugs, but are slightly larger in height and diameter, with tapered sides and a more accentuated handle.

If you require a visual or a sample of a printed Metro coffee mug then their friendly team will be happy to help, alternatively you can see their not so ugly mugs on youtube here.

Now here’s some promotional products that really take the biscuit (sorry). United Biscuits UK is set to launch a £2m marketing campaign across; McVitie’s Digestives, Jaffa Cakes, HobNobs and Penguin themed around the search for the UK’s favourite biscuit.

Their new marketing campaign kicks off in August, and is inspired by the good old British public’s love of biscuits. Their novel plan is entitled ‘Bonkers about Biscuits’, it comprises an eight-week daily giveaway of £5,000 backed by a TV ad campaign and targeted radio.

The promotional packs will be available from 16 August for a limited period. To enter the daily prize draw to win a share of £5,000, consumers have to enter a bespoke code from the back of a promotional pack along with their favourite McVitie’s biscuit on www.bonkersaboutbiscuits.com to be in with a chance to win. The great thing about this fun promotion, is that they will keep track of the votes via a game show themed creative.

If you see on their bonkers about biscuits promotional mugs around, and you like the quality of them, then The Mugstore are the clever chaps supplying them. If you’re looking for promotional mugs to promote your brand like McVities have, then give the friendly team at Mugstore a ring.

Obviously they wouldn’t reproduce what they had made for McVities for your businesses, but having your organisations artwork on the same promotional mug would be no problem at all.

The clever chaps at The Mugstore have just set up a Flickr account, showing off examples of their printed promotional mugs. These high quality images will act as a  great guide if your in the market for branded mugs, as they will give you a clear idea of what you may be investing it.

Click here to see their latest images of branded mugs they have produced, and of course feel free to get in contact with them if you have any questions. The beauty of having their branded mugs on Flickr, is that you can keep on eye on what client’s they have been working with. Also by looking at examples of their promotional mugs, you may pick up some inspiration about what you want to print yourself.

Just for a laugh they want you to send in images of your mugs and tea cups in random places, in return for a fantastic prize. So if you’ve recently been to the peak of Mount Everest, and boiled some snow for a cup of tea - send it in!

The ever popular branded Sparta mug is now available as a budget version. The printed Sparta mug has long been an industry favourite, and now The Mugstore is running a special budget Sparta mug option!

If the credit crunch is biting, then our budget Sparta mugs are corporate gifts that won’t break the bank. As long as you give us 10 working days, we can produce razor sharp budget Sparta mugs for your businesses. Just because a Sparta mug from The Mugstore is cheap, doesn’t mean its poor quality. Promotional Sparta mugs offer exceptional value for money, and they work well for practically any organisation.

Promotional Sparta mugs are available in a large selection of attractive colours, and are highly customisable. Promotional budget Sparta mugs are hard fired for increased durability and therma-glazed for razor sharp colours. Our budget printed Sparta mugs are both dishwasher and microwave safe too.

These cheap Sparta mugs are only on offer for the rest of the month, so save even more money on these branded Sparta mugs while you can. When ordering budget Sparta mugs, please allow 10 - 15 working days for them to arrive. We can produce cheap printed Sparta mugs quicker, but not for this rock bottom price.

If you like hot drinks, then it’s a safe bet to say you’ve drank out of a printed Sparta mug in your time. Promotional mugs are everywhere, with a branded Sparta mug being the most popular of them all.

Having a Sparta mug printed for marketing purposes is a popular choice for any number of businesses. However if your looking for something a little different, why not have your promotional Sparta mugs glazed for a bigger impact.

The Mugstore offer the best prices on glazed Sparta mugs, so get in contact with their friendly team for information on what is possible and pricing.

Promotional Sparta mugs are available in a large selection of attractive colours, and are highly customisable. Promotional Sparta mugs are hard fired for increased durability and therma-glazed for razor sharp colours. Our printed Sparta mugs are both dishwasher and microwave safe.

If you’re business is looking for some printed or engraved pint glasses, then The Mugstore has recently re-vamped that section of the site, making it much more user friendly.

Printed pint glasses will add a touch of class to any hotel, bar or cafe. While an engraved pint glass works well for special events, and could even become a collectors items. The Mugstore can supply every kind of printed pint or half pint glass you could wish for.

Traditional printed conical or tulip pint glasses are there, as well as more European style branded lager glasses. Having your corporate pint glass, printed with official measurements or arriving in special presentation box is no problem. If you have a particular branded glass in mind, then contact the friendly team at The Mugstore who will be able to help you out.

Since 1995 British goods sold in Europe have had to display metric weights and measurements. But imperial versions were also allowed in Britain under a deal in 1999 to calm the anxious British public, who didn’t want to loose their quirky measurements.

Controversy reached its height when the ‘metric martyrs’ lost a battle to trade only in pounds and ounces. Steve Thoburn, who unfortunately passed away in 2004, was convicted in 2001 for selling bananas by the pound without giving their metric equivalent. However rejoice as the British pint is free from the clutches of Europe and is here to stay. Cheers!