Made in Rochdale 2008

Heywood Civic Centre will be a hive of activity on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 March, when the venue plays host to around forty local women entrepreneurs showcasing their businesses at the third Made in Rochdale Trade Fair. The event will also incorporate an exhibition of local artists.

The exhibitors span a range of sectors including sculptors, finance, web design, hotel and catering, bridal, beauty and holistic therapies, toy makers and mobile barbecue services. What links them is that they are all run by women who are all members of the Rochdale Women’s Enterprise Network (RWEN). RWEN – now with 430 members and its own constitution  - grew out of businesses who had been helped by the Council regeneration project known as the Women’s Enterprise Initiative and wanted to continue to meet regularly to support each other and develop their own local supply chains.

WEI is a support service, located at the Employment Links Partnership building on the corner of Drake Street and Maclure Road and with a mobile base in Middleton. The team works with women across the borough (Pennines, Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale) to help them make that first idea a reality – either through specialised business training, funding advice, signposting to other services or through their growing network of like-minded women who motivate each other at regular events.

Barbara Davidson, WEI Manager says: “There is such a lot of talent here in the borough, but many women face barriers to starting their own business. The work we do helps them overcome these obstacles and as more and more businesses flourish, the boost to the local economy is sizeable.”

The new Head of the Council’s Policy, Partnerships and Regeneration service, Penny Sharpe, will open the event and keynote speaker will be thirty-something Nicola Shindler, herself brought up in Rochdale, who from early beginnings as a script reader now runs the award-winning Red Production film company in Manchester, responsible for such well known series as Clocking Off and Queer as Folk. 

A further keynote speaker was chosen from amongst the network members themselves – Richenda Yates. Richenda set up her own small business in North Manchester – Accessing Care Employment Ltd (ACE) specialising in training social care workers and carers and is keen to pass on the skills she has learned along the way.

The Trade Fair is open to the public from 11am-6.30pm on Friday and from 9am – 3pm on Saturday and will be a good opportunity for local businesses to source potential suppliers, or for visitors to simply pick up an unusual Easter gift from the many products and services on display.

Please contact Jane Glaysher-White or Barbara Davidson for more information.

Email: jane.glaysherwhite@rochdale.gov.uk / barbara.davidson@rochdale.gov.uk

Tel: 01706 646471