EMAIL ADDRESS :

hellobighandshake@thegiftclub.io

THE

BIG

HANDSHAKE
Gift Cards and Incentives

Brought to you by the The Gift Club

14 May 2025: Novotel, Amsterdam City Centre

 

For the 3rd year running, we’re back with The BIG Handshake (TBH) Gift Cards for a one day networking event in Amsterdam

HADIE PERKAS

CEO and Founder of The Gift Club and The BIG Handshake

Days
Hours
Minutes
Seconds

Take a look at what we got up to in May '24

ABOUT

The BIG Handshake - Gift Cards and Incentives

An absolute must for anyone associated with gift cards, incentives and rewards in Europe and beyond

Day One, 14th May - 1pm to 7pm

  • Joyalty panel - happiness that resonates from leadership to employee to customer
  • More Than a Gift Card Keynote: Unleashing the power of rewards & incentives for engagement and growth
  • 90 minute speed networking session. 3 minutes to elevate your pitch, product or services to 40+ companies
  • Live voting for top 3 partner pitches and best pitch
  • Best Pitch award
  • Networking drinks
  •  

Day Two, 15th May - 9am to 4pm

  • European trends, data and insights
  • Win Win Win - Cashfront vs Cashback, a unique gift card use case, presented by Marc van Venrooij, Coca Cola
  • The Art of Partnership Selling
  • How to create a fast-selling, brand new gift card
  • Marketing: Can it make or break your gift card programme?
  • Brighten Brand Experience and Customer Retention by Turning Your Gift Card Product into a Loyalty Proposition
  • The Gift Card and Incentives IQ Showdown
  • Meet exhibitors
WHERE IS THE EVENT :

Novotel Hotel Amsterdam City Centre, Europaboulevard 10, 1083 AD Amsterdam, Netherlands

WHEN IS THE EVENT :

13 and 14 May 2025

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BUSINESS INTRODUCTIONS

OUR SPEAKERS

Meet the industry know-it alls who'll be gracing us with their presence and injecting you with knowledge and wisdom!

Flora Leoni

Head of Data, CRM and Services Carrefour Italia

David Forsyth

Senior Manager, Gift Cards, Adidas

Sian Larsen

Senior Customer Rewards Manager, The Post Office

Karen Dumbrell

Senior Manager, Membership at Arsenal F.C

Denis Huré

CEO Reward the World™

Tiffany St James

Digital Industry Educator

Tom Peace

Managing Director The Loyalty People

Lisa De Vreede

Product Owner of Protectmaxx Alphacomm

Rob Burgess

Editor Head for Points

Jay Atkinson

Head of EMEA and Russia TDS Gift Cards

April
Cox

Retail Solutions Director UK Catalina UK

Dave
Allen

Group Commercial Director, Epsilon

Bill Alexander

Chairman, Motivates

Anthea Crawford

Head of Retail and Payment Partnerships, Google Play

Richard Robertson

Regional Managing Director, epay

Ben Rabb

COO at BitCard

Gaetano Giannetto

Founder and CEO, Epipoli

Flora
Leoni

Head of Data, CRM and Services Carrefour Italia

David Forsyth

Senior Manager, Gift Cards, Adidas

Sian Larsen

Senior Customer Rewards Manager, The Post Office

Karen Dumbrell

Senior Manager, Membership at Arsenal F.C

Denis
Huré

CEO Reward the World™

“A BIG Thank You to you for making our day so spectacular. The work put into making it happen must have been immense and the organisation was top notch. The day itself was excellent – the content, the venue, the tone and the people all made it what it was – and everyone seemed to enjoy it, learned lots and made loads of human connections – exactly how we discussed! You tried to give MLP as much value as possible both prior and throughout the day and the little off the cuff ideas like following the cow on wheels to the bar for the networking drinks, really worked! Thank you again!”

Simon Jamieson, Managing Director at The Marketing Lounge Partnership. Lead Sponsor for Day 1 at the BIG Handshake Loyalty, Amsterdam

Companies that attended May 2024

AGENDA

Here's the breakdown of your day to include all networking, learning and entertainment opporunities.

The BIG Handshake (1)

Day One - 14th May

Supported by Blackhawk Network Europe

13:00
Registration and Welcome

Coffee, Tea, Pastries

13:30
Opening address and The BIG Handshake

With Hadie Perkas, CEO of The BIG Handshake and The Gift Club

13:45

" Joyalty " - happiness that resonates through a business from leadership to employee to customer. 

 

Discover the scientific link between employee engagement and customer loyalty and how a remarkable correlation can impact this relationship and the business outcomes. Explore the role of leadership in creating employee happiness.  Customers can feel if an employee is happy or not based on the experience they have. And learn how business can positively impact that by keeping a close eye on the employees’ level of engagement. Join us for insights on cultivating a holistic approach to promoting business values for sustained success. 

 

14:30
More Than a Gift Card: Unleashing the Power of Rewards & Incentives for Engagement and Growth

It is challenging to meet business goals in the current economic climate and to keep employees and customers engaged. Gift cards have the potential to go beyond their traditional role and become a tool for engagement, productivity, and growth. By adjusting our perspective, gift cards can be the driver of employee satisfaction, customer loyalty and organizational success Presented by Chris Ronald, VP EMEA B2B, Blackhawk Network

 

15:00
Coffee Break
15:30
The BIG Speed Networking Session

Get ready for some fast talking, close-up conversation ( mints and business cards / QR codes at the ready!).  We invite everyone to enjoy The BIG Handshake’s first BIG speed networking session on Day One.  In this session,  you’ll have 3 minutes each to introduce your products or services to the person sitting opposite you before moving along to the next delegate.  Listen out for the bell and our MC’s instructions

17.00
Best Pitch Award followed by Networking Drinks in Club Pampus Bar

Delegate voting for the best pitch followed by The BIG Handshake’s best pitch presentation and awards

Day Two - 15th May

09:00
Registration and Welcome

Coffee, Tea, Pastries sponsored by EZ PIN

09:30
Welcome note from BVCNL, event partner and The Netherlands gift card association

Wendy Trienen, Senior Operations Manager at Blackhawk Network in The Netherlands and Chair of the BVCNL, will open the second day of the conference. She will talk about the mission and vision of the BVCNL and the great achievements the BVCNL as industry association has achieved since its founding. Furthermore a key summary of the BVCNL market data will be shared giving insights in the size of the Dutch gift card market and its audience.

09:50
The BIG Handshake and table introductions
10:10
Presentation

Win Win Win - Cashfront vs Cashback, a unique gift card use case for targeted sampling in collaboration with retailers, intersolve and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners NL.

 

Focus: Building a new digital industry standard for driving trail of new products, growing existing user (fan)base and rotation of products on shelf. While driving traffic (buyers) to physical retail outlets at the same time. All connected with the fast growing “Digitizing the Path to Purchase” focus of brands and retailers. Win Win Win: Consumer, Retailer, Brand.

 

Presented by Marc van Venrooij, Head of Digital Marketing and Innovation at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners and sponsored by Intersolve

 

10:40
Interactive Panel Discussion sponsored by Jigsaw Business Solutions

Marketing: Can it make or break your gift card programme

Inadequate marketing efforts can lead to low sales. Investing in smart and effective strategies will raise awareness and incentivise gift card and gifting purchases. From making better processing decisions to diverse digital or physical approaches this panel will also delve into how the consumer will most likely respond to them.

11:10
Coffee and Networking
11:40
Audience Workshop

The Art of B2B Partnership selling

Do you think selling a product or service is easy?.  What about selling the idea of a concept?  The BIG Handshake invites our audience to join this 45 minute practical workshop that will challenge what you think you know about securing new partnerships whilst learning a new type of sales skill. Is  partnership selling an art or a science or a whole new ball game entirely?

 

12:35
Keynote

How to create a fast-selling, brand new gift card 

We invite our guests to join Annemijn Borsten, MD of Wonderbox in The Dam.  She’ll be sharing what her 14 year B2B product journey has taught her about launching and marketing the fastest growing gift card in the Netherlands.

13:05
Networking Lunch
14:30
Panel Discussion

Brighten Brand Experience and Customer Retention by Turning Your Gift Card Product into a Loyalty Proposition

 

With more and more customers seeking distinctive shopping adventures, our panel will question the necessity of designing a unique “brand experience” to influence purchasing behaviour.  Will the investment engender retention of the new world consumer with ever-increasing expectations?  Through the lens of the gift card buying customer, they’ll debate the lengths companies should go (or not) to delight and reward customers and employees in an attempt to cement loyalty.    

Using real life examples, they’ll look at brand retention strategies such as digital experiences, play tech solutions (gamification), immersive and sensory dimensions personalisation, eco-credentials and sustainability…

 

15:00
The BIG Gift Card and Incentives IQ Showdown

Gift Card and Incentives IQ Showdown

Find your team, secure your seats, and brace yourselves for the ultimate industry showdown of the year with our interactive multiple-choice inter-table quiz. This challenge will put your industry expertise and attentive listening to the test! While it's more than just a game, there are exciting prizes awaiting the victorious team.

15:45
Winning table awards, closing note and coffee

Tickets now on sale

OUR SPEAKERS

Meet the industry know-it alls who'll be gracing us with their presence and injecting you with knowledge and wisdom!

Jamie Snelgrove

Head of Business Development, Society of London Theatre | UK Theatre

Sara Arecco

Head of Customer Success, Antavo

Annemijn Borsten

Managing Director Netherlands, Wonderbox Netherlands

Eduardo Miccolis

Founder, Copa International Consulting

Tony Stacey

Head of Partnerships, Rakuten TV

Katie Cannon

Managing Director, Jigsaw Business Solutions

Chris Oakley

Head of Partnerships and Client Success, Halfords

Katharina Wittgens

Managing Director at IB & Business Psychologist

Jock Jordan

Regional Vice President B2B at Blackhawk Network, One4all Ireland, Netherlands & DACH, Blackhawk Network

Chris Ronald

VP EMEA B2B - Incentives, Rewards & Benefits, Blackhawk Network

Nathan Kitchner

Operations Manager, CarltonOne Engagement

Julia Veitl

Senior Product Manager at IKEA

Peter Dorrington

Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Anthrolytics

James Malia

Global Chief Growth Officer & President - Europe at Prezzee

Rocio Liebana

Founder & CEO at RLC Solutions

Federica Földes

Executive Gift Card Coordinator at EU lastminute.com

Jacques Prothon

Founder and CEO at ODICCI

Isobel Finlayson

Senior Account Director (Partnerships) & Sustainability Lead at Mando-Connect

Wendy Trienen

Senior Operations Manager at Blackhawk Network in The Netherlands and Chair of the BVCNL

Gabriella Lamonica

Business Development Manager, AMILON

Marie-José van Eyken

HR Director, MJVE

Marc van Venrooij

Head of Digital Marketing & Innovation, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

OUR SPEAKERS

Meet the industry know-it alls who'll be gracing us with their presence and injecting you with knowledge and wisdom!

Jamie Snelgrove

Head of Business Development, Society of London Theatre | UK Theatre

Sara Arecco

Head of Customer Success, Antavo

Annemijn Borsten

Managing Director Netherlands, Wonderbox Netherlands

Eduardo Miccolis

Founder, Copa International Consulting

Tony Stacey

Head of Partnerships, Rakuten TV

Katie Cannon

Managing Director, Jigsaw Business Solutions

Chris Oakley

Head of Partnerships and Client Success, Halfords

Katharina Wittgens

Managing Director at IB & Business Psychologist

Jock Jordan

Regional Vice President B2B at Blackhawk Network, One4all Ireland, Netherlands & DACH, Blackhawk Network

Chris Ronald

VP EMEA B2B - Incentives, Rewards & Benefits, Blackhawk Network

Nathan Kitchner

Operations Manager, CarltonOne Engagement

Julia Veitl

Senior Product Manager at IKEA

Peter Dorrington

Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Anthrolytics

James Malia

Global Chief Growth Officer & President - Europe at Prezzee

Rocio Liebana

Founder & CEO at RLC Solutions

Federica Földes

Executive Gift Card Coordinator at EU lastminute.com

Jacques Prothon

Founder and CEO at ODICCI

Isobel Finlayson

Senior Account Director (Partnerships) & Sustainability Lead at Mando-Connect

Wendy Trienen

Senior Operations Manager at Blackhawk Network in The Netherlands and Chair of the BVCNL

Gabriella Lamonica

Business Development Manager, AMILON

Marie-José van Eyken

HR Director, MJVE

Marc van Venrooij

Head of Digital Marketing & Innovation, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

SPONSORS AND PARTNERS

jigsaw2019 (1) (1)
Intersolve-logo (1)
z-ezpin Logo (3)

Photos from The BIG Handshake May 2024

In May 2024 The BIG Handshake in Amsterdam attracted over 87 companies and 140 attendees.

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TESTIMONIALS

WHAT OUR ATTENDEES SAY

Check out below to see what our past attendees have to say about their experience.

 
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GET IN TOUCH

CONTACT US FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

If you need more information about the event, please don't hesitate to contact us. We are happy to answer any questions you may have and provide you with additional details.

EVENT VENUE:

Novotel Hotel Amsterdam City Centre, Europaboulevard 10, 1083 AD Amsterdam, Netherlands

Novotel Hotel Amsterdam City Centre

Novotel Hotel Amsterdam City Centre