Stansted Airport’s Meet the Buyers event has once again given Herts and Essex companies the chance to do business with some of the region’s biggest organisations.
The forum at the Radisson Blu Hotel on Tuesday (November 22) was the first in-person for two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since 2011 it has generated more than £20m in business. It is organised by Stansted Airport and co-run by Bishop’s Stortford’s Marketing Kinetics and UMi.
A total of 200 businesses attended, ranging from small start-ups to large companies, hoping to secure contracts with organisations such as RAF Lakenheath’s 48th Contracting Squadron, the US Air Force’s UK procurement unit, Essex County Council, Aggreko, Strutt & Parker, LPL Construction, VolkerFitzpatrick and SPIE UK.
The event was opened by Stansted’s new managing director, Gareth Powell, who said: “London Stansted is a key enabler of economic growth and productivity in the region, employing more than 12,000 people across 200 companies, and we consider it our duty to support the region’s SMEs and promote their entrepreneurial spirit.
“Businesses and SMEs in the region deserve to benefit from our success, and we want to provide them with routes and destinations that will enable them to connect and trade globally.
“With the event returning after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, we are delighted to host it again and I wish all the businesses attending a prosperous and successful day.”
Robert Lee, from Marketing Kinetics, said: “We’re all excited to see Meet the Buyers back as it’s such an important event for the local business community.
“After a challenging couple of years, it provided a fantastic opportunity for small business owners to finally meet suppliers face to face and pitch their products and services directly to them.”
Richard Taylor, managing director of Bishop’s Stortford’s Simpsons Creative, said: “This is my first Meet the Buyers event in a few years. This layout works very well, and the ability to network with like-minded people has been invaluable.
“We work with big companies around the world, but Meet the Buyers gives us the chance to showcase our work to local businesses.”
