Business Forum reaches membership milestone
The Wirral Business Forum welcomed its 1000th member in February as the free to join online network continues to go from strength to strength.
The Forum which was launched in October 2008 comprises new start enterprises and micro-businesses as well as large scale multi-national companies. They all have one thing in common though and that is that they all have an operating base in Wirral.
Steve Maddox, Wirral Council’s Chief Executive said: “I am really pleased that we’ve reached this significant milestone. The Wirral Business Forum is a core component of our Investment Strategy and is designed to support and engage with the Borough’s businesses as well as enabling them to network and do business with each other. We launched the Forum at a time when companies were faced with the most difficult trading conditions for a century so to reach 1000 members during this time is hugely encouraging and is just reward for the hard work that the Invest Wirral team has put in to make the Forum a success.”
The Forum adopts a cluster based approach with companies able to join as many or as few of the clusters as they wish. Some of the cluster groups companies can join include; Manufacturing, Food and Drink, Financial, Professional and Business Services, Construction, Digital and Media, Maritime and Logistics, Science, Technology, Environmental and Health, and Tourism and Retail.
Members of the Forum are also invited to regular cluster group meetings and events to discuss issues that effect businesses in their field, meetings which are chaired by private sector business people.
Mark McManus, Director of Stiebel Eltron UK and cluster group chair added: “ This is excellent news for Wirral and it demonstrates the ambition which exists within the Wirral business community to continue looking forward at opportunities for growth, joint ventures and inter-trading. It shows that despite the economic downturn, in general, companies and organisations in this area are clearly optimistic about building for the future. The Wirral Business Forum has been a great success and reaching 1,000 members highlights Wirral Council’s proactive thinking in supporting local businesses, I would urge any Wirral based business to consider joining this free initiative.”
To join the free Wirral Business Forum visit www.businesswirral.com and follow the easy registration process or call Invest Wirral on 0151 650 6915.
