Top places to network in Halifax

Once dubbed “the town of a hundred trades”, Halifax still has a thriving business scene. It’s

home to one of the few remaining family-owned and run department stores in the UK, Harvey’s, as

well as to one-man (and woman) businesses run from the kitchen table and everything in between.

Of course, it’s also our home and Croft Myl business centre is perfectly located just a few streets

from the centre of Halifax, meaning lots of amenities are within easy reach.

Networking is a great way to build your business, however long you’ve been running it, so here are

our recommendations for networking opportunities, most of which you can walk to from Croft Myl.

If you’re an early bird

Many people don’t want networking to eat away at their working day, so there are plenty of

breakfast networking opportunities.

If you like structure and can commit to going along every week then BNI could be for you. The BNI

Two Valleys (http://www.bnionline.co.uk/twovalleys/ ) group meets on Tuesdays at 6.45am at the

Elsie Whitely Innovation Centre on Hopwood Lane, Halifax. You can walk to the Elsie Whitely in

around 15 minutes from Croft Myl if you want to blow away the cobwebs before the meeting. Or it

has plenty of free car parking if you value the extra time in bed!

If you want relaxed networking over a drink

The Last Friday Club (http://www.mycci.co.uk/events/1587-last- friday-club), organised by the Mid

Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by local solicitors, Ramsdens, meets on the last

Friday of each month at BarEleven. It’s free to go along, there’s no obligation to turn up every time

and your first drink is on Ramsdens. BarEleven is just a five minute stroll from Croft Myl, so super-

easy to access.

If you want structured support for your female-run business

The Bird Board, a women-only network, meets on the third Thursday of every month between

12.30pm and 2.30pm. Talk through your business challenges in a supported and confidential

environment with fellow female business owners. The Bird Board meets right here at Croft Myl, so it

would take just seconds for you to get from your desk to the meeting if you were based in one of our

fantastic serviced offices.

If you can’t commit to going every week

Not everyone has time in available their diary to go networking every week. Business for Calderdale,

a not-for- profit organisation tasked with supporting the Calderdale business community, organises a

range of occasional evening events with a variety of different themes and venues. Check out their

latest calendar here http://businessforcalderdale.co.uk/events/

Of course, the best kind of networking is that which you do regularly so that people get to know, like

and trust you. What better way to do that than over a boiling kettle or a sandwich in our funky

garden room at lunchtime?

The residents at Croft Myl are what we call “accidental networkers” every time they grab a cuppa or

some lunch. If you think that sounds like a good idea, give us a call on 01422 413035 to chat about

our flexible office spaces, available on a tenancy-at- will basis, meaning you only ever have to give 24

hours’ notice if you want to leave (although we don’t know why you would!)