South Wilts Business Festival

Organised by Salisbury & District Chamber of Commerce, the festival will showcase the strength of the business community across Salisbury and South Wiltshire while welcoming visitors from across the wider region. Whether you already run a business, are thinking about starting one, want to develop your career, meet new suppliers, find new customers or simply want to see what is happening across the local business community, there will be a reason to come along. General admission is free. Start the day with Coffee & Connect The festival begins at 8:30am with the Chamber’s flagship Coffee & Connect event. Meet businesses and professionals from across the area over coffee and breakfast before the festival officially opens at 9:00am. Grist Environmental, Headline Sponsor of the South Wiltshire Business Festival, will provide breakfast for attendees during the opening event. Explore the exhibition From 10:00am, the main exhibition will open across City Hall. Meet businesses and organisations from Salisbury, South Wiltshire and beyond, discover potential suppliers and customers and find out more about the companies working and growing across the area. We are also inviting businesses and visitors from across Wiltshire, Hampshire, Dorset and the wider region to come to Salisbury and discover opportunities to trade, invest and build relationships here. Hear from an exciting panel of speakers An exciting panel of speakers is planned throughout the day, bringing together experienced business leaders and people with valuable stories and knowledge to share. This year’s main theme is Customer Experience. Talks will be short and practical, leaving plenty of time to explore the exhibition, meet people and take part in other parts of the festival. The full speaker line-up and session topics will be announced in the coming weeks. Meet the Buyer Could your business supply some of South Wiltshire’s major organisations? Our dedicated Meet the Buyer programme will give suppliers the opportunity to meet procurement teams, understand what they buy and learn more about how to work with them. Organisations taking part include: Salisbury District Hospital Salisbury City Council Salisbury 800 Wiltshire Creative Meet the Buyer sessions will run for 45 minutes and require separate booking. Chamber members and festival exhibitors: Free Individual session for non-members and non-exhibitors: £20 Access to all Meet the Buyer sessions: £50 Looking for your next career opportunity? You do not need to own a business to attend the South Wiltshire Business Festival. A specialist careers area will bring major local employers together with jobseekers, students and people considering their next career move. Expected participating organisations include: Salisbury District Hospital Salisbury Reds The Army Aspire Defence The aim is to create something more useful than a traditional jobs fair, with the opportunity to speak directly to major employers and find out what opportunities may be available. Who is the festival for? The South Wiltshire Business Festival is open to people from all backgrounds with an interest in business, careers and enterprise. That includes: • Business owners and directors • Entrepreneurs and start-ups • People thinking about starting their first business • Employees looking to progress their careers • Students and graduates • Jobseekers • Freelancers and self-employed professionals • Businesses looking for customers or suppliers • People considering investing or doing business in Salisbury • Anyone curious about enterprise and the local economy What to expect 8:30am Coffee & Connect, networking and breakfast 9:00am Official opening of the South Wiltshire Business Festival 10:00am Main exhibition and speaker programme begins From 10:30am Meet the Buyer and specialist sessions Throughout the day Exhibitors, short talks, networking, careers opportunities and business conversations 4:00pm Festival concludes Register to attend General admission to the South Wiltshire Business Festival is free, but registration is required. Come for the morning, stay for the day or build your visit around the sessions most relevant to you. Join Salisbury’s business community at City Hall on Wednesday 30 September 2026 and discover the businesses, people and opportunities across South Wiltshire.