CambsB2B North is Peterborough’s flagship business event, bringing together hundreds of professionals, leaders and organisations from across the region for a day of connection, insight and opportunity. The event showcases the strength and diversity of the local business community, with a dynamic programme of networking, expert speakers and exhibitors.
Taking place during the Chamber’s 100th year of supporting businesses in Peterborough, this landmark event also celebrates a century of championing growth, collaboration and enterprise across the city.
Designed to spark collaboration and drive growth, CambsB2B North provides a platform for businesses to raise their profile, share knowledge and build meaningful relationships. Whether attending to make new connections, gain fresh insights or explore new opportunities, it is a key date in the regional business calendar.
8.00-9.45am – Business Breakfast
10.00am – Official opening
Exhibition, expert speakers and networking opportunities (full agenda to be announced)
11.00-11.45am – ‘How to Stop Being the Best Kept Secret’
Anne Buckland, Co-Founder and Director, We Do Stories
8 in 10 businesses tell us they join the Chamber because they need greater brand visibility. If that sounds familiar, this session is for you. Anne will share practical strategies to help you step out from being a “best kept secret” and into a more visible, credible and in-demand brand. Learn how to raise your profile, attract the right attention, and ultimately grow your top line.
12.15-1.00pm – AI & Automation Without the Hype: Where to Start
Jason Mashinchi, Managing Director at Cambridge Kinetics
Most AI conversations are either overhyped or impractical—this session focuses on what businesses actually need to do to get ready. Aimed at SMEs and manufacturers, Cambridge Kinetics will share real examples of AI and automation in use today, the tools worth your time, and a clear view of cost vs benefit. The core focus is preparation: how to get your data, processes, and workflows in a shape where AI can actually deliver value, where AI agents fit, and how to move from isolated experiments to something that works across the business. We’ll also cover where things are heading, so you can make decisions now that set you up properly for what’s next.
2.00-2.45pm – In Conversation with: Neville Wright
Host
Mike Greene, Chamber Board Director, Founder and CEO of the Growth Syndicate
Speaker
Neville Wright, Entrepreneur
Neville Wright is a self-made British entrepreneur. Born in 1950, he was labelled “stupid” by teachers, an experience that would later fuel his determination rather than define his limits. Living with ADHD and dyslexia, Neville did not follow a traditional academic path. Instead, he leaned into practical thinking, instinct, and resilience qualities that became central to his business philosophy.
A chance meeting in 1966 with a schoolgirl of the same age, which instantly became an inseparable lifelong relationship. After having had 18 jobs by the time he was 24, they decided this route had got them nowhere in life, so with just 37 pence, they became self-employed window cleaners.
Building their career from modest beginnings, developed a reputation for spotting opportunities where others saw complexity and simplifying them into commercially powerful solutions.
Marilyn and Neville are probably best known for the creation of Kiddicare, which they built from nothing into the UK’s most successful independent baby equipment retailer.
It became a major retail success, from 1977 building and selling the business in various formats along the way. Eventually building probably the largest baby shop in the world employing 125 full time staff, generating millions in revenue, ultimately selling the business in 2011 for 70 million in cash, the unique thing was that it was a partnership which had never been a ltd Company.
At the same time, they had built a property portfolio of 30 million and pursued a range of other ventures, demonstrating a consistent ability to grow businesses across different sectors.
At the heart of Neville’s approach is his personal adaptation of the KISS principle: “Keep It Simple or you’re stupid.” While blunt, this philosophy reflects his belief that overcomplication is the enemy of progress. By stripping ideas back to their essentials, he created scalable systems, strong teams, and businesses that could grow naturally and sustainably.
Despite early setbacks and labels, Neville’s career stands as a challenge to conventional measures of intelligence and success. His achievements highlight how neurodiversity, when embraced, can become a powerful advantage in entrepreneurship.
Now in their mid-70s, they continue to run businesses alongside their family, maintaining the same energy and clarity of purpose that defined their earlier career. Neville’s and Marilyn’s story is one of persistence, simplicity, and redefining what it means to succeed on their own terms.
3.00pm – Exhibition close
3.00-5.00pm – Drinks reception
Location
Holiday Inn Peterborough West
Thorpe Wood, Peterborough
PE3 6SG