North East business leaders have hailed the success of a popular business event, with over 1,000 people attending sessions across Sunderland.
Sunderland Business Week, which returned for a fifth year, ran from October 13 – 17, with headline speakers including Radio 1’s Jamie Laing – co-founder of gourmet confectionery brand Candy Kittens; Team GB legend Colin Jackson; and social media pioneer Alex Partridge. The trio took part in fire-side chats, discussing their lives and careers at SunFest on Thursday, October 16.
The week-long event, which was previously called Sunderland Business Festival, included expert presentations, panel discussions, sofa chats, networking, workshops and more.
Councillor Kevin Johnston, Portfolio Holder for Housing, Regeneration and Business for Sunderland City Council, the event’s headline sponsor, said: “Sunderland Business Week really shone a spotlight on our transforming city to a business audience from across the region and showcased the many ways in which Sunderland is positively contributing to the regional and national economy too. It was a real celebration of Sunderland, business and entrepreneurialism.”
The week was organised by Sunderland Business Partnership, a collective of organisations – large and small – all with an interest in the city’s development, creating opportunities for members to collaborate and grow, which in turn helps Sunderland to be a more dynamic destination for business.
Rob Lawson OBE, chair of Sunderland Business Partnership, said: “We are delighted to have been able to deliver another successful Business Week in Sunderland, which showcased what a brilliant, dynamic place the city is for enterprise.
“There were so many inspirational talks, workshops and events during the week.
“I’d like to thank all our wonderful speakers, sponsors and venues who made the event so enjoyable.”
This year’s week featured flagship event SunFest, a full day event at Sheepfolds Stables, where Jamie, Colin and Alex were joined by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness for a day of inspiring talks, workshops, live music, and networking in a vibrant festival setting.
There were also sessions on AI, emotional intelligence, social media marketing, business development and Sunderland AFC’s journey to the Premier League, as well as live performance and entertainment throughout the day.
Alistair McDonald, Business Development Director at Ward Hadaway, said: “Sunderland Business Week was nothing short of phenomenal! SunFest was such a great event, amazing venue, brilliant and atmosphere and such interesting guests. Roll on next year!”
Sunderland Business Week was sponsored by Sunderland City Council, North East BIC, NatWest, Ward Hadaway, Sunderland College, Gentoo, Procure Smart, Sheepfolds Stables, Richard Reed Solicitors, Sunderland BIDs, Sunderland AFC, New Results, Creo Comms and Stephen Elms.
Craig Shields, Managing Director of Procure Smart, said: “The whole week was a roaring success and we found SunFest to be an insightful and enjoyable experience. It was a pleasure for us to see our brand displayed alongside some of Sunderland’s core organisations and be associated with positive events like this.
“We thought all of the sessions were useful for business and student attendees and the day gave us an opportunity to promote our new partnership scheme and our Switch Savvi platform. We’re already looking forward to next year.”
To learn more about the Sunderland Business Partnership, visit the website www.sunderlandbusinesspartnership.co.uk