UK Startup & Scaleup Week

Got an idea for a new business or want to know how you can make your existing business more successful? UK Startup & Scaleup Week is a 5-day, multi-venue, citywide festival in Sunderland (in the North East England) that will inspire and educate you on how to start, grow and fund a successful business in the UK.

Sunderland has been gearing up to be one of the most exciting places to live, work, start & grow a business in the UK & so we are helping to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem in the city through our 'UK Startup & Scaleup Week' festival in June 2025 & our monthly 'PLATFORM' events since June 2024.

Over the course of 5 days (between 2-6 June), we will cover the following themes that we believe all new businesses, projects or services need to go through to be a success:
 

1. Monday = INSPIRATION
2. Tuesday = GETTING STARTED
3. Wednesday = FUNDING & FINANCE
4. Thursday = GROWING & SCALING
5. Friday = KEEP GOING OR PIVOT?

Day 1 ('INSPIRATION') is the main conference taking place in the beautiful, 550 capacity auditorium at The Fire Station in Sunderland city centre.

Featuring a range of inspirational keynote talks & fireside chats (including Sara Davies MBE, Daniel Priestley & Paul Mort) plus panel discussions, breakout sessions, exhibitions & networking opportunities, Day 1 is our main event that will inspire & motivate anyone with an idea for a new business venture, who has recently started a business, is an established business owner or leader, works in a large enterprise serving SMEs, is funder or investor & anyone else who wants to see the business community in Sunderland, the North East & wider North of England succeed.

Days 2-5 (described below) will take place in different venues in & around Sunderland city centre & are focused on different stages in the business startup & scaleup journey.

Day 2 ('GETTING STARTED') will provide practical information & advice on how to start a new business, product or service & bring your creative ideas to life.

Day 3 ('FUNDING & FINANCE') is for anyone looking for funding to start or grow a business (covering grants, loans, investment, crowdfunding & other sources of finance).

Day 4 ('GROWING & SCALING') is all about sales, marketing, business development, leadership, mindset, automation & AI, how to find talent & build teams, partnerships, national & international expansion.

Day 5 ('KEEP GOING OR PIVOT?') is all about how to survive & thrive in the weeks & months ahead, how to know what is & isn't working, how to stay focused & how to change direction if necessary. It's also a celebration of the week we've just had with a closing party for everyone.

1 wristband for all 5 days

When you buy a ticket, you will receive a wristband on arrival that gives you access to all day & evening events taking place across the 5 days.

Everyone will be able to attend Day 1 but Days 2-5 will be in smaller venues so you will be asked to specify which days & events you wish to attend nearer the time.

The wristband will also give you access to all of the after parties and networking events taking place across the week, entitle you to various special offers and discounts in local venues.

Tickets for UK Startup & Scaleup Week 2025 here