Two companies from the Haverhill area who met at The Haverhill Business networking event at The Epicentre have showcased the power of collaborating and doing business together.
Keith Williams who runs a company called Kiiwii Clothing & Promotions met Ryan Farrow the UX/UI Designer at SourceCodeStudio that creates bespoke digital solutions for companies including websites, software and apps.
They found they both had a common desire to help smaller businesses who can’t necessarily afford the costs of the bigger suppliers in the market. For this kind of customer SourceCodeStudio created LiteSource while Keith Williams created founded KiiWii Kits to provide branded clothing and merchandise targeting smaller companies and youth sports clubs in the East Anglia region by offering smaller batch runs.
Because of their common ethos there was a meeting of minds and the KiiWii Kits brand was brought to life through a new logo and website design to launch the first custom sports club kits and merchandise seller with a free club shop in the UK. Without that chance meeting at The EpiCentre I wouldn’t have met Ryan and would have had to spend time looking for a supplier to deliver the online marketing tool we needed. He understood our need perfectly and we are very happy with the outcome,” says Keith Williams.
“The networking events work very well for us. We normally go along once a month, there is a great turn out of people from all areas of business. It’s a massive benefit for Haverhill’s business sector and we regularly meet people who are enquiring about our branded clothing and asking for quotes,” adds Keith Williams.
Ryan Farrow says his company has really benefited from the networking events. “We weren’t well known so we started going along to the networking meetings and met really interesting people. People really do get connected and we all follow up so its paid off. We have become part of a wider business community. It’s what Haverhill has always needed and is bang in the middle of the region drawing on business close by such as Cambridge, Saffron Walden, Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds. I have been going to the meetings for a long time and don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.”
The EpiCentre’s centre manager, Andrew Bell, says: “We are thrilled that Keith and Ryan have found common ground and have been able to work together with a shared ethos of helping smaller organisations in the region.
“This demonstrates that The EpiCentre plays an important part in the development of a business ecosystem in the Haverhill area for growing companies to reach out and come together, to share experiences and where appropriate to collaborate with each other.”
The EpiCentre holds regular networking events, workshops and seminars both for businesses located in the centre and from the surrounding area. For further information www.epicentrehaverhill.co.uk/events/
