The British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA) is to provide a suite of officially sanctioned Challenge 25 artwork for suppliers, retailers and delivery companies involved in the legitimate supply of age-restricted bladed items such as kitchen knives. The collateral aims to make it easier for the industry to uphold the age restrictions and ensure compliance with new laws arising from The Offensive Weapons Act 2019, which is due to come into force.
The Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA), which created the original Challenge 25 concept for use in the retail of alcoholic drinks have approved the new materials for housewares suppliers and stockists, as well as the Met Police’s ‘Knife Crime Steering Group’.
BHETA’s Challenge 25 collateral (available through the trade association’s member services team) includes artwork for labels, posters, shelf barkers and badges for use in the retail environment and, for the first time, artwork for supplier packaging and labels for outer cartons used in home delivery. The Challenge 25 message displayed in red and black makes it clear that under-25s must now expect to be challenged to prove their age.
BHETA’s marketing manager, Stephen Richardson (who led BHETA’s dialogue with both the WSTA and the Metropolitan Police and ensured that the graphics are consistent industry-wide) commented: “The original Challenge 25 concept was all about making in-store enforcement of age restriction easier for retail staff and this remains a really important objective. BHETA has extended the initiative, however, to include supplier packaging for the first time; and to include labels for outer packaging to remind delivery companies of their age restriction responsibilities regarding parcels.”
* BHETA’s taskforce for responsible knife retailing campaign includes: John Lewis, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Dunelm, Steamer Trading, T K Maxx, Elys of Wimbledon, Harts of Stur, Taylor’s Eye Witness, Amefa, Fiskars, Meyer, Haus, Burton McCall, Kuhn Rikon, Rayware and Robert Welch. The taskforce’s remit is to promote and enable safe and responsible retailing, looking at product design, packaging, in-store security, merchandising and checkout procedure, consumer education and staff training.
* BHETA has been working with Scotland Yard on knife sales issues since summer 2019.
* For more information about BHETA lobbying, Challenge 25 and the BHETA, contact the member services team on 0121 237 1130 or visit the BHETA website www.bheta.co.uk.
Top: A Challenge 25 badge.
