Your journey as a startup has begun; you have a business plan, a product, or a disruptive, industry-changing service ready for the market. The only problem is that there is no traction coming your way. So startup events can be your saviour. Whether a customer or an investor, startup conferences, business shows, or industry-specific conventions are the perfect places to meet the right people. Startup conferences are, in simplest terms, networking events for startups that can help you take your business in the right direction.

The event aims to create an ecosystem where leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, and mentors from various industries can connect and share their experiences. As a result, there are all kinds of events. Some are for finding investors and funds, whilst others are pitch events during which you may present your brand or product to prospective customers and investors. These events are also designed to help you acquire skillsets that aid your startup’s growth.

Often hosted online, especially after the Pandemic, free events are easy to find. Some conferences, however, charge a fee. If you wish to follow particular events yearly, you may need to set aside a separate budget. In this article, we will cover some of the best startup events in London, both in-person and virtual.

Hopin Events 

If you cannot attend startup conferences physically, you can turn to websites like Hopin, where you can find conferences like London Startup Fair in their past events. In their own words, “Hopin is a virtual venue with multiple interactive areas that are optimised for connecting and engaging.” Promising high show-up and low drop-off rates, Hopin is popular among event organisers who often utilise this type of service. Plus, you can look up startup events regardless of where you are, eliminating location as your enemy. 

London Startup Fair 2022

Co-hosted by Imperial College London, UCL, and LSE, London Startup Fair caters to entrepreneurs of many industries, such as FinTech, cryptocurrencies, healthcare, and renewable energy. If you want to discover more about the inner workings of the startup ecosystem, this is the event for you. Of course, you will be able to grow your network, but you will also learn about work opportunities and internships and attend relevant workshops while being in close contact with the top brains in your sector.

So, clear your calendar for February and follow here to be the first to know when the tickets are launched for the next gathering.

Techstars Startup Week London

If your startup’s niché is tech, you are in for a treat this October. The Techstars Startup Week is one of London’s best tech startup events. This five-day event is organised by entrepreneurs and run by volunteers to remain free of charge. The organisers emphasised providing a sense of community to the local startups. It aims to create a better environment to start a business and eliminate the loneliness of being a startup founder.

Techstars Startup Week is typically structured around “tracks,” a set of themes on which panels and speakers are based. The attendees can pick whatever activities they wish to attend over the week from those distributed across the city. The theme of this year’s event is Climate Tech. You can find a calendar of all Teachstars Community Events here.

‍

‍

Entrepreneurs Collective (EC) Events

So far, Entrepreneurs Collective has had over 5,000 attendance across events and over 50 speakers and panel members; it arranged over 80 events in 2021. Its events had more than 100 participants on average. EC conducts in-person and virtual events with guest speakers. In addition, they host Business Networking Nights and Pitch Competitions in which founders and investors interact. Don’t miss these events if you don’t want to be left behind in London’s startup scene.

Startup Summit 2022

Startup Summit is actually celebrating its 10th year in 2022. Representatives of globally recognised brands share their stories and experiences with budding entrepreneurs. The Startup Summit aims to educate attendees on the foundations of running a business, such as marketing, strategy, leadership, sales, and investment, among other topics. You can sign up for the Startup Summit 2022 event to be notified when the tickets begin to sell and access previous years’ talks.

The Business Show 2022

Identifying the tools and products your company needs to persist in the business world is crucial. The Business Show offers attendees the secrets of business adaptation and innovation to grow your startup. This year, the Working From Home Live and Retrain Expo will also accompany the event in ExCel on 16-17 November. Working From Home Live provides the necessary tools and assets to work remotely, whereas Retrain Expo helps you adapt your skills and upgrade your knowledge for the future.

On the flip side, Going Global will also be there, offering unmatched education and information regarding trade agreements on how to strategise internationally and account for cultural and economic discrepancies. You will also get the chance to be in the same room with countless potential investors who seek to invest abroad. With over 750 exhibitors, 350 seminars, and masterclasses, The Business Show promises almost everything you may need to scale up your startup for free. So if it sounds alright to you, you can register here.

‍

Startup Grind Global Conference 2022

Startup Grind caters to leading startups and scale-ups worldwide that contribute to the transformation of the web. This year, it is “going truly global with a one-of-a-kind decentralised conference” to reach as many willing participants as possible. Over 50 satellite events will be held in Startup Grind Chapters worldwide in the week preceding the main event, which will be live in Silicon Valley and online on April 12-13, 2022. 

Startup Grind Global Conference is expected to draw 15,000 people who will “explore the next wave of the web, bridging the gap between web2 and web3, producing human-centric businesses, touching various communities, and more.”

‍

The Entrepreneurs Network (TEN)

A little differently, The Entrepreneurs Network is the Secretariat of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Entrepreneurship, endeavouring to bridge the gap between entrepreneurs and policymakers. Their network consists of over 10,000 people. They believe that entrepreneurs who work to solve issues like climate change, educational equality, creating new jobs, expanding consumer choice, and supporting higher-quality public services “will raise long-term living standards of future generations.” Their objective is to make Britain the best place to start and grow a business by drawing policymakers’ attention to innovation, talent, investment, and competition. If you want to be a part of their dream, follow all of their events here; select the event you are interested in and fill out the application form.

‍

‍

Women in Business & Tech Expo

Women in Business & Tech Expo is a conference that prioritises women-led startups. So if you hit the bill and want to further your career or business, you should leave 12-13 October empty for this event. WBTE not only inspires but also offers guidance and recruitment opportunities, as well as business services to aid your growth. Options like finding an employer that supports female leadership, entering the tech field and progressing in it, finding support for your existing business or launching a new one, or even returning to work after you take a break from your career can be effortless to come by for WBTE visitors. You can find more information by following the link.

Entrepreneurs In London 

With significant numbers come great networking opportunities. Entrepreneurs in London is an extensive meetup network made up of over 22,000 members. You can still benefit from their workshops, seminars, and startup networking events even if you are a fresh startup or in the growth stage. This is one of the event networks that can be constant in your calendar since they organise events every two months. Make sure to check meetup and their Facebook page to keep tabs on their event schedule.

Women Who Code

Women Who Code is an all-inclusive network. It is “dedicated to providing an empowering experience for everyone who participates in or supports our community, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, ability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, age, religion, socioeconomic status, caste, creed, political affiliation, or preferred programming language(s).” So if you are a woman looking to progress your career in tech, WWCode’s events are just the thing for you. In addition, their strict policy of no tolerance of harassment creates a safe space for anyone who might be intimidated by crowded events. 

Be a part of their vision while they try to create “a world where women are proportionally represented as technical leaders, executives, founders, VCs, board members, and software engineers.” All of their events are free, and you can access them here.

Founders & Coders

If you are a founder, you may need to acquire skills you thought you would never need to grow your business. One of these skills is coding. Regardless of having a technical co-founder, an entrepreneur's coding skills are always advantageous. To get your hands dirty, Founders & Coders provides an entirely free and highly interactive coding bootcamp. Aside from the bootcamp, you are welcome to attend their meetup events where peer-led coding activities are organised. You can apply to their Summer and Autumn Programmes here and connect with the group on Facebook and Twitter.

Youpreneur Summit

Youpreneur Summit will occur in Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, between 12-14 November. However, Youpreneur is doing things a little differently from other events. It’s a zero-pitch event, meaning presenters won’t try to sell anything and will deliver practical knowledge for entrepreneurs and company owners. The purpose of the event is to arm you with a versatile skill set that will help you in many ways to reach your target audience, ranging from creating the right online content to employing the correct marketing strategies for establishing your brand. Another critical point is how to monetise your passions and ideas so that you can grow your startup in a future-proofed way. So be quick to snatch your tickets here.

Big Data London

The previous year’s Big Data London show included 130 industry leaders, 9 conference theatres that held 150 professionals with significant knowledge, meetings, first-person consultations, and product launches and demos. Although the new Seminar Guide has not yet been released, if you are interested in customer and company data and want to learn how to make the most of it, you may visit their website to get an idea and stay up to date on the news.

Upstream’s Coffee Club

Another locally organised event, Upstream’s Coffee Club, targets science-tech-creative startups or organisations based in Hammersmith and Fulham. Upstream is a collaboration between Imperial College London and Hammersmith and Fulham Council aimed at connecting and supporting the borough’s Science, Technology, and Creative sectors and assisting in the transformation of White City into a centre of innovation. 

If you want to share your experiences as a startup with fellow entrepreneurs and brainstorm with like-minded people, Upstream’s Coffee Club events are a gem to grow your network. By filling out an application regarding your needs as a business, Upstream tries to make sure you can be supported in the best way.

‍

You now know what startup events to look forward to in 2022. However, besides preparing your proposals for Pitching Competitions or attending speaker seminars or bootcamps to increase your knowledge of your specialised business and gain a new skill set, you must consider another factor when applying to these events: expenses. And, it’s not only the ticket prices. If the event you’re interested in doesn’t have a virtual leg and you’re operating outside of London, you’ll need to factor in costs like travel and housing. 

If you have a limited budget or wish to attend these events to get seed funding, you must be mindful of your cash flow. Whether you want to bring your founder team to an event or get your hands on tickets to as many bigshot conferences as you can that are happening towards the end of the year, you may need to set aside a hefty sum. However, do not waste your time taking out loans that take too long to come in and risk sold-out tickets. Debite can assist you in getting where you want to go. You can quickly and efficiently finance your tickets and other costs with your Debite’s Save and Spend Loan, which you can obtain within a day. You can spend with your virtual card to secure your tickets immediately and pay back in up to 12 months’ instalments. This way, you will never have to sacrifice other things to set aside a budget and miss another event season.

‍