Wednesday 5 November 2025 was truly a day to remember as the Essex Chambers returned to Chelmsford City Racecourse for our fourth Festival of Business, and what a spectacular day it was.
Anticipation for this year’s premier business event had been building for weeks. The whole Essex Chambers team were extremely excited, but nothing could prepare us for the enthusiasm, engagement, and reception we received that day.
The Summer Marquee and outside space at the racecourse was bursting with 112 exhibiting businesses and visitors representing the diverse range of stellar companies in the county. We were joined by over 1,000 attendees on the day smashing every record in the events history.
Expertly compered by our incomparable host, Eric Dixon, the day was packed with engaging speakers, panel discussions, fantastic festival features and of course an outstanding business exhibition.
A highlight for many was the hilarious and thought-provoking conversation between Eric and our Headline Speaker, George Clarke. The duo discussed George’s journey through education, the design industry and media opportunities that eventually led to him becoming a household name. His candid passion for design, sustainability, and skills development was infectious and many of our attendees left feeling inspired.
George Clarke was also on hand to crown our second Best in Business Award winners, TechWyse. The company, who had presented to our panel of esteemed judges earlier in the day, are a fantastic example of Essex entrepreneurial excellence. They walked away with not just the title of Best in Business but also a trophy and £2,500. The TechWyse team has already been in touch to say they’ll be donating £500 of the prize money to charity.
Well done to our other finalists and entrants, there was such a high calibre of application it was difficult to pick between you all.
Year on year the Festival has continued to grow in popularity and scale but we couldn’t make it happen without the support of our business community.
Thank you to our incredible sponsors and collaborators who worked in partnership with us to make this year’s event an unprecedented success.
A special mention to our Headline Sponsors Essex County Council and Ambitious Essex. We were delighted to be joined by so many departments and staff from the council for Drop-In-Clinics, workshops and as exhibitors, showcasing the many ways the council is on hand to support businesses. It was also a pleasure to have Cllr. Louise McKinlay, Deputy Leader of the Council open the event with our CEO, Denise Rossiter.
Our sincere thanks also goes out to:
Allwag Promotions | AnuragFoodStory | Box River Studios | c2c | Chelmsford City Racecourse | Chelmsford Community Radio | Colchester Events | D4P Media | Delta Hotels by Marriott Colchester | Devoted Events | Diamond Press | Fenwick | Magic Mushroom Restaurant | Radio Essex | Southend Theatres | The DS Group | Trotter UK | Wilkin & Sons | Wivenhoe House Hotel.
One of the main goals of the Festival of Business has always been to celebrate the Essex business community. We always try to bring in elements that liven up festivities and this year it was a pleasure to be joined by Devoted Events who provided a range of fun and interactive activities for attendees to get involved with. A spectacular feature of this year’s event had to be the indoor fireworks the Devoted Events team provided. It was Bonfire Night after all; we couldn’t let the day go off without a bang!
Our CEO, Denise Rossiter, spoke after the event saying:
“A heartfelt thank you to everyone who exhibited, visited, and collaborated with us to make this year’s Festival of Business the best in the event’s history.
“Sincere thanks to Cllr Louise McKinlay and the team at Essex County Council & Ambitious Essex for your belief in and support of our mission to bring the county’s business community together to celebrate and connect.
“The feedback has been truly overwhelming. Once again, from myself and my team, thank you.”
Preparations are already underway for the Festival of Business 2026. Contact our team if you would like to get involved in the biggest business event in Essex.
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13.11.2025
