Moving to the future

The Professional Movers’ Association (PMA) congress 2017 proved to be a great success and was indicative of a positive trend in the removals industry

More than 100 delegates descended on the Champagne Sports Resort on September 15 for this year’s three-day congress.

Day one kicked off with a fun, novel and undoubtedly 21st-century way to get delegates to know each other … a “selfie hunt”, in which groups of delegates darted around the hotel taking selfie photos. “It was a great way to break the ice and get the spirit going,” comments outgoing PMA president Ian Pettey.

Following the selfie hunt everyone enjoyed a welcome braai around the pool, before getting some vital rest ahead of conference proceedings on the second day.

As chairman of the congress organising committee, Danny Amaral took on the role of master of ceremonies for the day. The official business session kicked off with the PMA AGM – at which Pettey handed over the reins to the new PMA president Dirk Smit.

The incoming PMA regional chairpersons were introduced. These are Duncan Schulze (KZN region) and Ryan Kruger (Western Cape Region), who join Carla Schoeman (Northern Region) and Lucia Coetzee (Eastern Cape) on the committee.

The South African International Movers’ Association (SAIMA) AGM then followed with the outgoing president, Julie Romanis, handing over the SAIMA reigns to Morne Rudolph. Doug Fear was also welcomed onto the NEC by Julie Romanis.

The work sessions were followed by guest speaker presentations and a very productive presentation was delivered by the new PMA president, Dirk Smit, on his vision for the future of the PMA. 

Importantly, all delegates were very impressed with the proposed changes and welcomed them! 

First-time PMA congress sponsor, Iveco South Africa, hosted the evening’s event; the Iveco Magic Gala Dinner. The company made an impression and pulled out all the stops for a beautiful and memorable evening.

Speaking of sponsors, Iveco was joined by a host of companies keen to show their support for the local removals industry. The PMA wishes to thank: Air Menzies, Aon, Boxlee, Future Packaging, Isuzu Trucks, Mediterranean Shipping Company, Pet Port, Pets Travel, Trudon and Work Force. Davene Pitallo and all the Event-Pro staff did themselves proud and again organised and ran a fantastic conference!

The conference wound down with a fantastic day of bonding with colleagues and sponsors on the golf course. “The Champagne Sports Resort golf course is fun, beautiful and challenging,” comments Pettey.

“The final evening was the golf prize giving and dinner where fun was had and where delegates had time to discuss issues, reminisce and look positively towards the future,” Pettey concludes.

As the PMA enters a new era with new faces at the helm and fresh ideas on the drawing board, the future of the South African removals industry seems to be in good hands!