Visitor City in spotlight at annual business breakfast

It forms part of the city's annual Business Week from September 25 to 29.

The breakfast will take place between 8.30am and 11am and is being sponsored by The Halls Wolverhampton.

The event, which will be held at the newly-opened The Halls following its £48 million transformation, will include a respected line-up of speakers.

Attendees will get to hear how Wolverhampton’s reputation as a visitor destination is being transformed following significant investment in the city’s cultural, retail, leisure and events offer; how this is boosting the city’s economy, driving further regeneration and what opportunities this is creating for businesses operating in the visitor economy, food and beverage and hospitality sectors.

Among the speakers are Steve Homer, chief executive at AEG Presents – the new operators of The Halls Wolverhampton; Maggie Grogan, manging director at Muse; Katie Trout, director of policy and partnerships at West Midlands Growth Company; Simon Cooke, director at Apam – the new owners of the Mander Centre and Tim Johnson, chief executive at City of Wolverhampton Council. More speakers are set to be announced soon.

The breakfast is the showpiece event of the business week which will include a range of events hosted by the council and city partners across the week.

These include Unleashing the Power of AI at Ignite on September 25. It is an interactive session where businesses can discover the extraordinary potential of artificial intelligence

A green marketing workshop for small and medium-sized businesses is being held at the National Brownfield Institute on September 27 when businesses can gain valuable insights into the latest trends in sustainable marketing.

There will be a jobs fair for young people and recruiting employers at The Youth Employment Hub on September 27 to support local people into work. More events are set to be announced in the coming weeks.

Businesses interested in attending the breakfast and other events taking place during the week can find out more at investwolverhampton.com/businessweek

Councillor Stephen Simkins. City of Wolverhampton Council acting leader and cabinet member for inclusive city economy, said: "The council is proud to co-ordinate the city’s tenth annual business week programme, which is a first-class example of partnership working to support the city's local economy and demonstrates our commitment to supporting business growth.

“Recent investment in city centre projects, including £48m in The Halls and more than £15m in the west of the city centre to create event spaces, are examples of the major transformation that is improving Wolverhampton as a visitor destination – and there’s more to come.

“Our pro-business attitude continues to attract new investment and secure business expansion, which together are helping to generate thousands of jobs and achieve the best for our residents and businesses.”