SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
The Leicester Business Festival is an annual fortnight of business events, held right across Leicester and Leicestershire in the Autumn.
Events are free and anyone can attend. They vary in type, structure and size, across digital and in-person platforms, and from workshops and seminars to product demonstrations, showroom tours and round table debates, to name but a few!
The agenda is exciting and diverse and there really is something for everyone!
Local businesses and organisations are behind the events, which aim to offer help and support, educate, share information and knowledge or create forums for networking, engagement and business growth.
The festival has been running since 2015 and each year, it sees hundreds of events and thousands of attendees.
As a firm fixture in the business calendar, the LBF is also known across the UK and it draws a spotlight on Leicester and Leicestershire, demonstrating the region’s business strengths, innovation, and highlighting its huge investment potential.
Not only is the LBF the largest business event in the region, but it has become Leicester & Leicestershire’s annual economic showcase and is cited as an important part in the post-Covid economic recovery plan.
WHO IS BEHIND THE LBF?
The LBF is operated under the Leicester Business Festival Community Interest Company (CIC) established in 2016, and delivered by Associate Events. It is a fully community-owned and operated festival.
The aim is not to be profit making and if any money is made through the partnership arrangements, it is re-invested back into the festival to make it bigger, better and more effective.
The CIC currently consists of local business directors, Richard Osborn, Regional Director at Excello Law and former Divisional Director at Brewin Dolphin, Ian McCormack. The CiC has recently welcomed some new directors, David Nicholls, Sean Michael Jarvis and Rupinder Drew.
There are currently vacancies on the board and the CIC is seeking innovative and influential individuals who would be interested in helping to steer the future of festival to the next level. Please contact hello@leicesterbusinessfestival.com or call 0116 464 5995 to find out more.
HISTORY
The Leicester Business Festival was founded and seed-funded by the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP).
The idea was to bring Leicester and Leicestershire’s business community together to incite networking, sharing and ultimately catalyse business growth.
The intention was to also create a focal point that allowed Leicester and Leicestershire to promote its successes, ambition, drive and outstanding selling points, to attract outside interest from a business and investment perspective.
The first festival in 2015 aimed for just 20 events and to achieve local community buy-in to the concept. But it was met with such an overwhelmingly positive response by the business community, that over 80 events took place, around 7,500 participated and the marketing reach topped an estimated two million people.
And the LBF has continued to go from strength to strength.
By the end 2016, having established a successful event with a long-term future, the LLEP was able to hand the organisation of the LBF over to the purposely-established Community Interest Company (CIC), under which it is now run.
Each year the Festival continues to evolve and develop so that it remains impactful, meaningful and relevant to the communities that it serves.
