Your Festival

Programme

14-18 October 2024

George Clarke
We have an exciting line up of speakers for this year's Sunderland Business Festival inlcuding George Clarke, Si King and Alex Partridge.
The action-packed programme will feature expert presentations, panel discussions, fire side chats, networking, workshops and more.
You can browse and book on to events below.

Monday 14

Hope Street Xchange

Launch event

9am – 11am

The Sunderland Business Festival 2024 will kick off with an update on city developments and a panel discussion on key business priority areas.
The panel will include:
  • Patrick Melia OBE - Sunderland City Council
  • Ellen Thinnesen OBE - Education Partnership North East
  • Milan Radosavljevic - University of Sunderland
  • Sharon Appleby - Sunderland BID
  • Paul McEldon OBE - North East BIC
  • Alasdair Greig - Northstar Ventures
  • Hosted by Rob Lawson OBE
The session is open to members of Sunderland Business Partnership and is invite only.

Interested in joining Sunderland Business Partnership? Email us.

Interested in joining Sunderland Business Partnership? Contact: admin@sunderlandbusinesspartnership.co.uk

North East Economy

12pm – 1pm

A panel discussion with key regional and national business leaders around the future of the North East economy.
The panel will include:
  • Mauricio Armellini - Agent, North East for The Bank of England
  • John McCabe – chief executive of North East Chamber of Commerce
  • Martin McTague – chair of the Federation of Small Businesses
  • Henry Kippin – Chief Executive of North East Mayoral Combined Authority

Supplying to Film & TV

2.30pm - 4pm

Would you like to find out if your business could become a supplier for Film & TV productions in the North East?
There are lots of opportunities for businesses across the region to become involved in the exciting world of film and TV.
With more productions than ever coming to the region, they are looking for supply chain companies interested in adding the film and tv industry to their client list.
Come and meet the North East Screen Business Development team to find out if you and your company could get involved.

Tuesday 15

Various

Foundation of Light Business Breakfast - Women in Leadership

Beacon of Light

7.45am – 10am

A business breakfast event themed around Women in Leadership, with a panel of fantastic female leaders from the city.
The panel will include:
  • Lesley Spuhler OBE, DL - Chief Executive Officer, Foundation of Light
  • Ellen Thinnesen OBE - Chief Executive, Education Partnership North East
  • Susan Fulton - Executive Director of People, Culture and Engagement, Gentoo Group
  • Natasha McDonough – Founder & CEO, MMC Research / Vice President, North East Chamber of Commerce
  • Steph Libbey - Assistant Head Coach, Sunderland AFC

Expo Sunderland - Delivering the Future City

City Hall

9am – 8pm

A series of keynote sessions, guided city tours, round table discussions and delegate networking activities across 2 days that combined, serve to address the main obstacles and possible solutions to accelerate collaboration and align with national priorities.

Digital Marketing Masterclass

Hope Street Xchange

9.30am - 4.30pm

Join the University of Sunderland for a masterclass to help you to develop and implement effective digital marketing activity.
This masterclass will help you to develop a strategy and choose the most appropriate and effective tactics for your organisation.
This course is for business managers, owners, and people responsible for marketing within their business or organisation who might not have any formal marketing or digital marketing qualifications or would like to refresh their knowledge.
Fully funded under UKSPF for businesses, organisations and employed people in Sunderland or £125pp outside of the criteria.

The Ladies Collective - Refuel

Lookers Nissan, Sunderland

6pm – 8.30pm

Guests are invited to spend an inspirational evening with other local business women with an event which is dedicated to supporting you to refuel and realign your goals, whilst we facilitate a safe space to connect, collaborate and thrive. All with the usual Ladies Collective fizz, fun and an amazing array of powerhouse speakers, hosted by Lookers Nissan Sunderland.
Keynote speaker – Nicola Wood, TEDx Speaker, Award-winning Hair-loss Specialist, and Chief Executive, The Wonderful Wig Company
  • Celia Samater - Faculty Academic Support Lead: Sunderland Business School, University of Sunderland
  • Louise Kennedy - Founder and Managing Director of multi-award-winning HR agency, Oculus HR
  • Natasha McDonough - Founder and CEO of Market Research Agency MMC and Vice President, North East Chamber of Commerce
  • Kimberley Cattin - Managing Partner of SB1 Group and Creator of the Original SoapBrows
Panel hosted by Activated Mindset Online:
Alongside a session from Brent Gilpin, Co-Director at The Cell about the importance of nutrition and fitness to refuel.

Wednesday 16

Various

Expo Sunderland - Delivering the Future City

City Hall

9am – 3pm

A series of keynote sessions, guided city tours, round table discussions and delegate networking activities across 2 days that combined, serve to address the main obstacles and possible solutions to accelerate collaboration and align with national priorities.

The Position of Social Enterprise within Sunderland

The Fans Museum

10am – 12pm

Social enterprises are businesses designed to address social or environmental issues while generating profit.
In Sunderland, a growing community of these enterprises play a crucial role by providing essential services, creating employment opportunities and promoting innovative business practices.
But while Sunderland has a fantastic social enterprise sector, increasing environmental, social and economic challenges mean the nation needs social enterprises today more than it ever has done.
This event will explore the incredible role social enterprises are playing within our community, what the future landscape of social enterprise could look like, and what we need to achieve this vision.

Sunniside Placemaking Strategy Showcase

Mackies Corner

3.30pm – 5pm

Learn more about an exciting vision for a transformed Sunniside.
This is a drop in event and there is no need to book in advance.

The Business of Football: Reigniting an Icon and redefining the fan experience

Stadium of Light

7pm – 8.30pm

The story that captivated Sunderland this summer was the return of iconic sports brand hummel and delivery of a new retail experience with global leader Fanatics.
This energetic and insightful discussion with senior leaders from Sunderland AFC, Hummel UK and Fanatics, will give a unique glimpse into how the partnership came together and how a common desire to super serve fans and deliver a unique experience is at the core of the new relationship.
Panel includes:
  • David Bruce - Chief Business Officer, SAFC
  • Neil Burke - CEO, Hummel UK
  • Anna Mitchell - International Business Development, Fanatics
Tickets will cost £10 + booking fee, with the proceeds from the tickets going to the Foundation of Light.

Thursday 17

Sheepfolds Stables

In Conversation With Si King, Alex Partridge and George Clarke

9.30am – 2.30pm

Si King, Alex Partridge and George Clarke will be part of a day of inspirational talks from well known faces discussing their lives and careers, hosted by former BBC Look North newsreader Jeff Brown.

Session 1: Si King

9.30am – 10.30am

Best known for fronting numerous TV shows as one half of the Hairy Bikers, Si will be discussing his life and career in business and on-screen.
“I’m delighted to be taking part in Sunderland Business Festival," said Si. "It’s a fantastic time for the city, there’s a real buzz in Sunderland and people can see things happening and new developments coming out the ground that will make a real difference."

Session 2: Alex Partridge

11am – 12pm

Alex founded LADBible and UNILAD aged 21, they would go on to be two of the most popular social news and entertainment internet companies in the world, with an astonishing 100 million followers around the globe.
After being diagnosed with ADHD in later life, Alex launched the ADHD Chatter podcast, with each episode featuring diverse experiences and expert insights, aiming to combat stigma and provide support.

Session 3: George Clarke

1pm – 2pm

TV architect George is best known for fronting TV shows such as The Restoration Man and George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces.
He will be discussing his life and career that has seen him go from growing up on a council estate in Washington to being a mainstay of TV for 20 years.

Access to Business Support Sunderland

3pm - 5.30pm

Discover the range of support on offer to Sunderland businesses.
Hear from a range of organisations who can help your business unlock funding and support.

Friday 18

Various

Growth Lab Sunderland: Strategy Masterclass

North East BIC

9am – 1pm

In this interactive and engaging masterclass, Growth Lab Host and Founder of Reclaro Pete Wilkinson will demonstrate exactly how to get rocket-fuelled results from your strategic initiatives.
Life is full of good intentions and business is no different. Chances are you already have strategic goals for your business but how well are you actually executing them?
Objectives, plans and KPIs – it’s easy for them to fall by the wayside when day-to-day demands distract. But imagine what the future could look like if you really made this stuff happen.

Reimagining Our High Street

Hope Street Xchange

10am – 12pm

A collaborative design dash with University of Sunderland students and Sunderland BID
A collaborative, multi-stakeholder workshop, bringing together University of Sunderland students, local retailers and businesses to co-create a futureproofed High Street.
Attendees ideas will act as inspiration for Sunderland Business Improvement District’s (BID) team and may contribute to the reimagining of our High Street.

Wine on the Wear

Sweeney Miller House

2.30pm – 4.30pm

Sweeney Miller Law are launching their first Wine on the Wear networking event as part of Sunderland Business Festival.
Join us for drinks and canapes at Sweeney Miller Law's new Sunderland HQ as we celebrate the end of Sunderland Business Festival in style.
The event is informal so please feel free to drop in anytime!