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Times are uncertain, and the organisers of the Global DIY Summit addressed this early on when planning the programme. The theme of the twelfth Summit, taking place from 16 to 18 June 2026 in Amsterdam, captures this perfectly: "Accelerating in a New Global Reality – Building Collective Awareness for a Fast-Changing World". And in the meantime, further global crises have certainly arisen, which are having a negative impact not least on the DIY sector.

In this situation, the industry considers it very helpful that, with the Summit, it has a reliable platform for an event where the top management of practically all key players in the international DIY and gardening scene can exchange ideas. The organisers – the international trade and manufacturers’ associations Edra/Ghin and Hima – place great value on reliability, particularly at a time when they too are undergoing changes in leadership: both associations have new presidents.

And: at Edra, John Herbert – the man who played a key role in founding both the association and the congress – is retiring. He will take to the stage in Amsterdam to share his wealth of experience with the participants: "Reflections on 70 years in retail: From counter service to the digital age" is the title of his talk. He will also deliver the laudatory address for this year’s Global DIY Lifetime Award winner, Carl Otto Løvenskiold.

There has also been a change in the Summit organising team: for the first time, Alexandre Laubie, the new Managing Director of the Global DIY Summit, will lead the programme for the two days of the congress alongside John Herbert.

The programme is based – with reliability as the key word – on the tried-and-tested format of previous years: there will once again be a major store tour on the day before the two congress days, and a highlight will be the gala dinner. And something participants always value highly: there will once again be a conference exhibition, where the industry meets at the stands during the breaks – very much in keeping with the motto: it is about facing these uncertain times together as an industry.