Due to a last minute meeting cancellation, I found myself with some free time in Towcester this morning, and coincidentally it was the 2nd meeting of the newly launched Business Biscotti group in Towcester, so it really would have been rude not to go along.
Meeting details and Location
You can find your local meeting details by taking a look at the Business Biscotti website.. The Towcester group is currently the only one in Northamptonshire and is held currently at 185 Watling Street Pub & Kitchen in the centre of Towcester, on the first Thursday of every month from 9.30 to 11.30am
The meetings are promoted and hosted by the local ‘ambassadors’, 5 local business people, some of whom I already knew from networking locally, who promote the group locally and welcome visitors. You can visit twice for a small fee of £5 before being asked to join.
There is no food or drink provided at the meetings, but the bar staff are on hand to serve hot and cold drinks. It means if you are watching your waistline you don;t need to worry, unlike many other groups I have been to.
The meetings are quite casual, you can display business cards of leaflets but it’s up to those attending to mingle and chat with each other. No elevator pitches or monthly minutes, but it’s an informal venue where you can make connections and get to know other local business people.
My View
When I arrived at the meeting I was greeted by Lee Bodily, one of the ambassadors, and was given a warm welcome. There was a good mix of familiar faces, some of whom I’d not met in a while, and others who I’d not met before. It didn’t take long to order a cuppa and start chatting with the others attending the event.
I do like the informality of the meetings, but I can see if you are a shy sort of person then you might want to go along for the first time with an existing member to introduce you around. I’d suggest though if you are at all nervous just contact one of the ambassadors in advance, who you can see listed on the main website, and they would make sure you were well looked after.
I really didn’t notice the time passing, and stayed much longer than the 2 hours allotted time. I had excellent catch up chats with several people as well as meeting and exchanging cards with some others too.
Would I join / visit again?
I had actually decided that I would like to join the group very soon after arriving, there was such a positive buzz and vibe in the room. Business Biscotti is effectively a Private Membership Organisation, and the founder and owner Sue Reeves came along and gave a short talk about the beginnings and ethos of the group as this was only it’s 2nd meeting.
There is an offer on until the end of March for a £5 discount on the £60 membership fee, so I actually signed up as soon as I returned to my office. I can now attend any other groups around the country, although in reality the only practical group which I could go along to at the moment is Milton Keynes, which is held on the 3rd Wednesday of the month at Abbey Hill Golf Centre.
If you’d like to come along with me to future meetings then please do get in touch.
