The first Walsall Business Week culminated in a very successful Expo event staged in the sports hall at the University of Wolverhampton’s Walsall Campus. The University of Wolverhampton students provided vital support on the day helping the businesses make the most of their morning. The whole programme for the week was planned by the Walsall Economic Board and was designed to help strengthen Walsall’s business community by providing advice, information, financial support and business opportunities to firms across the borough. This was achieved through seminars and workshops, as well as showcasing the products and services they provide to clients worldwide.
The Expo showcase was the result of a three-way collaboration between Black Country Chamber of Commerce, Best of Walsall and Gone Fishing 4 Business. The three organisations shared their experience and contacts to bring together nearly 300 local businesses of all sizes and sectors. The expo element of the event included 70 display tables for local companies to demonstrate their services and products to the delegates. Attendees were also able to attend eighteen free round table sessions for fifteen minute bites of information with topics such as business growth advice, cybercrime, and developing a social media presence.
Quiss Technology Limited had a stand at The Expo and presented an information session. Matt Rhodes, Commercial Services Manager, commented: “We saw this as a great opportunity to spread awareness of the ever topical issue of cyber security. We met so many people during the 3-hour event who had been experiencing issues with their current IT or needed support with future growth. It was great to meet so many people and indeed so many people genuinely interested in hearing how we can help them. We are now following all of these enquiries up and looking forward to working closely with more local businesses and investing some of our time and support into the local economy. If you didn’t make it to this year’s event, we can highly recommend it and will hopefully see you next year!”
The organisers, Penny Griffiths from Black Country Chamber of Commerce, Councillor Chris Towe from Gone Fishing 4 Business and Alex Murray from the Best of Walsall were delighted with the event, the first such collaborative event between the networking groups and they are planning to do more such events in the future.
The team from Enoch Evans LLP were at The Expo to engage with and support the local business community. The team consisted of solicitors from the corporate and commercial departments as well as employment and dispute resolution. It was an excellent forum for the team to engage with local businesses and entrepreneurs, hopefully the Walsall Business Week will become a platform for future events. Managing Partner, David Evans, commented: “As one of the largest private employers in Walsall and being based in Walsall we were delighted to support local enterprise initiative and promote the quality services offered by Walsall businesses.”
Also on display was the Export Truck Hub which hosted a free workshop to increase the knowledge of how to ensure websites appeal to an international audience and to provide an insight into the role that e-marketplaces can play in boosting your international sales and the power of online branding.
