The benefits of business networking for firms covering St Ives and Cambridgeshire

What a regular seat at the Thursday table can do for your business, your confidence and your local community.

Why Networking Works

Most small businesses grow on recommendation. People buy from people they know and trust, and they pass work to suppliers they can vouch for. Business networking simply puts that habit on a regular footing.

At Riverport, the same group of local business owners meets every Thursday. Week by week you get to know each other’s work properly, so when a friend, client or neighbour needs a trade or service, the people in the room know exactly who to point them towards.

Riverport has put me in touch with entrepreneurs who want to improve & grow their business, share ideas, refer clients to eachother & have fun whilst doing so.

Victor Sacks

What Membership Brings

Referrals From People Who Know You

Every member is listening out for work on your behalf. A recommendation from someone who has heard you talk about your business week after week carries far more weight than a cold enquiry.
A Steady Flow of Leads

Lead generation has its own slot in every meeting. Leads are written up on slips and logged, so opportunities are followed through rather than forgotten over coffee.
Your Category, Kept for You

Only one business from each trade or profession can join, so you are never competing with another member for the same work.
Support From Your Peers

Running a business can be lonely. Members share what they have learned, pass on new trends and offer an honest sounding board when you are weighing up a decision.
Confidence in Front of a Room

A short introduction every week, and a longer slot when it is your turn, sharpens how you talk about your business to anyone you meet.
Friendships Beyond the Table

Members regularly meet up outside the weekly breakfast to get to know one another, and each other’s businesses, in more depth.

Learning as You Grow

Guest speakers join us throughout the year, and every six weeks or so the meeting becomes a peer to peer session on one practical area of running a business.

IT security
Website content
Social media
Tax & accounting
Giving presentations

See how a meeting runs

Good for St Ives Too

When local businesses recommend one another, more of the money spent in St Ives stays in St Ives. A wide mix of professions and trades sit around the table, so members can usually point a customer to someone trusted nearby.

There is still plenty of room for more - if your trade is not yet represented, your seat could be waiting.

Meet our members