About us
Built by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs.
The Festival of Entrepreneurs was created with a simple ambition: to bring together the people, ideas, connections and opportunities that help businesses grow.
We're not a corporate events company looking to capitalise on the latest business trend. We're entrepreneurs, business owners and event organisers ourselves. We understand the challenges of starting, running and scaling a business because we've experienced them first-hand.
And we believe that when you bring ambitious people together, extraordinary things can happen.
Our story
Our roots go back to the Festival of Enterprise, which brought more than 4,000 entrepreneurs together at the NEC Birmingham in 2019.
Building on that experience, we launched the Festival of Entrepreneurs in 2025, creating a new platform to connect Britain's founders, business owners and the organisations that help them grow.
Now in its second year, the Festival returns to the NEC Birmingham on 3–4 November 2026, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, industry leaders and business growth experts for two days of ideas, insight, connections and opportunities.
With a growing programme of speakers, exhibitors, partners and networking opportunities, our ambition extends well beyond a single event. We're building a national platform that helps entrepreneurs make the connections, access the expertise and discover the opportunities they need to grow and scale their businesses.
The key people behind the festival
James Ashwood — Founder
James has spent more than 25 years creating businesses, building commercial communities and delivering large-scale events.
Having founded and operated businesses across advertising, film and events, he understands the opportunities and pressures that come with entrepreneurship.
In 2022, he co-founded Innovation Zero, which grew into a major UK event for the net zero economy, bringing together business leaders, investors, innovators and policymakers.
James founded the Festival of Entrepreneurs to create the kind of business event he believes entrepreneurs really need: commercially relevant, genuinely useful and full of opportunities to meet the right people.
The Rt Hon Sir Liam Fox — Chair
Sir Liam Fox brings decades of experience in government, international trade and economic policy to the Festival.
During a 30-year parliamentary career, he served as Secretary of State for Defence and Secretary of State for International Trade, and was the UK's nominated candidate for Director-General of the World Trade Organization.
He also chaired the Global Britain Commission and previously served as Chair of Innovation Zero.
As Chair of the Festival of Entrepreneurs, Sir Liam helps connect the entrepreneurial community with the wider conversations around investment, international trade, innovation and economic growth.
Alex Chisnall — Co-Founder & Content Director
Alex is an entrepreneur, podcast host and experienced interviewer of founders and business leaders.
As the creator of a leading entrepreneurship podcast, he has interviewed more than 600 entrepreneurs, CEOs and influential business figures, exploring the experiences, decisions and lessons behind their success.
Alex brings this network and editorial experience to the Festival, helping shape a programme that combines inspirational entrepreneurial stories with practical insights for business owners.
Nadia Ashwood — Co-Founder & Director
Nadia plays a central role in the Festival's development, working across partnerships, commercial relationships and the wider business.
Her focus is on building lasting relationships with the organisations, networks and communities that support entrepreneurs across the UK.
An Experienced Team, Built to Deliver
Behind the Festival is a team combining experience in event production, partnerships, content, marketing, operations and commercial development.
From working with speakers and exhibitors to building the event experience itself, the team shares a commitment to creating something that delivers genuine value to everyone involved.
The Festival works in partnership with NEC Connected, the NEC's in-house event services team, which provides the stages, exhibition infrastructure and production support that underpin the event.
This combination of entrepreneurial thinking, established industry relationships and professional event delivery allows us to be ambitious about both the content and the experience.
More than an event
We believe entrepreneurs need more than inspiration.
They need access to expertise, finance, technology, customers, talent, new markets and, above all, the right connections.
That's why the Festival brings together the people who have built successful businesses, the organisations helping others grow and the next generation of entrepreneurs determined to make their mark.
We're building the Festival we would want to attend ourselves. An event where ideas turn into action, introductions become opportunities and ambitious businesses find new ways to grow.
