Dacorum business week starts on Monday

Dacorum Business Celebration runs from Monday, April 25 to Friday, April 29, and will feature a host of activities, workshops and seminars, all leading up to the launch of this year’s Dacorum’s Den grant scheme and a Friday night quiz.

Kicking off on Monday, Maylands Business centre will host a number of business support surgeries for local businesses, offering start-up and growth advice as well as information on relevant topics such as ways to export, business planning, social media and facts about protecting your intellectual property. To end the day, Metro Bank will be hosting an evening networking event at their town centre offices.

On Tuesday a ‘Show Me The Money’ breakfast seminar will be at the Holiday Inn Breakspear Park, with presentations from HOW2 Business Solutions and Hertfordshire Growth Hub.

Wednesday sees a Connect Dacorum networking event with a difference, as everyone is invited to a voluntary litter-picking session to help tidy the environment and enjoy lunch with speakers at the Old Town Hall. This will be followed by an afternoon seminar at Maylands Business Centre in partnership with West Herts College and the University of Hertfordshire which will focus on ways to upskill the business, get advice on apprenticeships and financial incentives.

Thursday is dedicated to the retail sector and will include sessions on ‘Growing Your Business with Market Research’ in Hemel Hempstead and Tring. This will be followed by a retail showcase about ‘Investing, Innovating and Inspiring Retail’ hosted by the University of Hertfordshire in the evening.

Friday sees the launch of Dacorum’s Den 2016, the grant scheme for new and young businesses - now in its fifth year - and demonstrating huge impact for those awarded finance to help grow their businesses in Dacorum. The week of special events will be rounded off on Friday evening with a quiz night at Little Hay Golf club.

Lesley Crisp, Maylands Business Centre manager, said: “Dacorum Business Celebrations aims to showcase that businesses are flourishing in our borough and that Dacorum Borough Council and its partners are working hard to encourage this success through the delivery of accessible and practical support and advice.”

Turn to page 19 for our weekly business section.