Island Business Network

Name: Island Business Network
Address: John Cheverton Centre, Mountbatten Hospice, Halberry Lane, Newport, PO302ER, GB
Telephone: +447712569886
Rating: 5

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IBN is a collection of business people who pass business and referrals to fellow members, meeting on Personal recommendation is a major source of new business.
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IBN is a collection of business people who pass business and referrals to fellow members. Business on the Isle of Wight, perhaps more than anywhere else in the UK, is very often obtained by personal recommendation and word-of-mouth. IBN members pass referrals between one another, which they have been able to identify through the course of their working week. We only admit one member per profession or trade, so make sure that you join and benefit before a competitor does. We are here to offer that helping hand.

29/10/2026

After a busy few weeks with guest speakers and many visitors, it was a more mellow meeting this morning and we enjoyed the presentation from Blake Nash, founder and Director of the Media House Agency.

"Digital marketing is promoting your business online, so the right people find you and buy from you."

Blake explained how his firm can manage all the ways clients can find your business: search, social media, email marketing, video & photography and your website...his point being that through a well-managed digital marketing campaign, every click can be measured. He demonstrated using a local case study, the huge impact a well-managed campaign can have on business performance.

The meeting was closed with a quote shared by our Director: "Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned."

Reflection 🤔 What's one small action you'll take today? Small actions, repeated consistently, change businesses.

Visitors are always welcome to join us at our weekly meeting. We meet every Thursday 07:00 - 08:30 in Newport, Isle of Wight. Contact us at [email protected] for more information and to reserve your place.

Alison Thorogood Amber Beard Andrew Nordbruch Ben Silk Claire Beasley David Ross Gavin Kelly Hannah Woodford Louise Rippon Mark Lounds Mark Price Nicholas Gale Paul Spreadbury Rebecca Taylor Stuart Vass Suzy Morris

26/10/2026

At this week's meeting of the Island Business Network we will be hearing from one of our members, Blake Nash of the Media House Agency, a creative agency for destination brands on the Isle of Wight and the South Coast. They produce films and photography that make a destination stand out, build the websites that convert the interest and set up the tracking that shows which bookings came from where. One senior team, one accountable line from the shoot to the sale. 💥

Visitors are welcome to join us every week at IBN, just email us at [email protected] for details and to order your free breakfast. We meet in Newport, Isle of Wight every Thursday morning 07:00 - 08:30.

22/10/2026

We welcomed a number of guests to our meeting today including three young people who wanted to experience a business networking meeting for the first time. Well done to Amy Lou, Alfie and Miles for putting themselves right out of their comfort zones (and also getting up early during half-term ). 👏 👏 👏

Our Director shared some information from The Careers & Enterprise Company (thanks to Ekiñe Fernandez) about the importance of work experience:

🎯 Employers offering any form of workplace experience are 77% more likely to report business benefits than those who offer none
🎯 Young people who have four or more meaningful encounters with employers, are 86% less likely to be unemployed and can earn to 18% more over their career.

Gemma Fox and Emanuel Ribeiro joined us again as visitors and confirmed that they would like become members. 🤝 🤝

Finally, it was good to see Helen Curel CEO of the IW Chamber of Commerce and Emma Hawtin from the IW Youth Trust.

This week's member presentation was from Mark Price of Prime Design Solutions Ltd. He shared an update on printing - "it's still alive" 👀 and went on to explain his role as Print Designer. A printed product creates emotion and print is now perceived to be more trustworthy than digital. His final message was:

➡️ Digital can give us reach
➡️ Print offers trust to our customers
➡️ Use print to sell online

Our Director closed the meeting sharing a quote from children's right's advocate, Marian Wright Edelman:

"It's hard to be what you can't see."

Today was an opportunity to show some of the different paths into working life here on the island. What could each of us do to help a young person discover a possibility that hadn't considered? 🤔

Alison Thorogood Amber Beard Andrew Nordbruch Ben Silk Blake Nash Claire Beasley CAROLE LAMBERT Suzy Ross Hannah Woodford Martha James Nicholas Gale Rebecca Taylor Jorja Hinton Suzy Morris Tom Durman Trevor~ Cook Vicki Sitch

19/10/2026

A slightly different kind of networking at Island Business Network this week 👀

With half-term approaching for some Isle of Wight schools, we're inviting our members to bring a young person along to experience one of our weekly breakfast meetings.

We all know how valuable work experience can be in building confidence, developing communication skills and opening young people's eyes to the world of work.

At IBN, we want to do our bit by giving the next generation an opportunity to meet local business owners, hear about different careers and discover what networking is all about.

After all, networking isn't just about doing business. It's about building relationships, sharing experiences and learning from one another.

And you're never too young to start!

We're looking forward to welcoming some new, younger faces around the breakfast table this Thursday.

They will have the opportunity to hear from member Mark Price of Prime Design Solutions Ltd who will be presenting to the group this week. Based here on the Isle of Wight, Prime Design Solutions creates refined, purposeful design for anyone who values clarity, quality and consistency. From personal projects to growing brands and established organisations, they deliver graphic design that communicates with confidence and intention.

Visitors are welcome every week; please contact us at [email protected] for more information and to reserve your free breakfast 😊

15/10/2026

It was Visitors Day at this week's meeting of the Island Business Network. A number of members invited visitors and we welcomed a lovely, big group this morning 💥

Thanks to those who joined us:

Emily Scotcher Alex Titmuss-Morley Tracy Osborn Gemma Fox Claire Westbrooke Brendan Speedie Rachael Rogers Richard Jarman Scott Payne Nick Falkowski Emanuel Ribeiro Peter Monk MRPSA CSRT CSSW CSDV Matthew Whittaker
🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝 🤝

Andrew Nordbruch shared with us his Purpose of IBN and then
all members and visitors gave a 60 second update, introducing their businesses.

After our coffee break, three members gave an overview of their experiences with IBN: Mark Price who has been a member for four years, Ben Silk who has been a member for "half his life" 😉 and James Tregonning who has been a member for eighteen months. It was interesting to hear their reflections and how important IBN has been to their businesses and personal development.

Our Network Coordinator, Rebecca Taylor shared the referral and visitor stats for September and prizes were awarded to James Tregonning for giving the most referrals 🏅 and Mark Price for receiving the most referrals 🏅 Claire Beasley bought the most visitors 🏅 Well done to all! 👏

Visitors are welcome every week and can attend twice without obligation. We just need to be notified at [email protected] so that we can order a breakfast for you 😉

Alison Thorogood Amber Beard Andrew Nordbruch Ben Silk Blake Nash Claire Beasley CAROLE LAMBERT David Ross Gavin Kelly Hannah Woodford James Tregoning Louise Rippon Harry Wall Mark Price Martha James Nicholas Gale Rebecca Taylor Stuart Vass Suzy Morris Tom Durman Trevor~ Cook Vicki Sitch

12/10/2026

It's just a few days to the Island Business Network Visitors Day on Thursday, 15th October, 07:00 - 08:30, Newport, Isle of Wight.

We are dynamic and welcoming group of business people and we want to open up opportunities for more people to join us. If you would like to find out more come and join us for a coffee and delicious breakfast. Contact us at [email protected] to book your place.

11/10/2026

Would you like to find out more about Island Business Network? We are holding our Visitors Day on Thursday, 15th October, 07:00 - 08:30.

IBN is more than just business development. It's a source of information, skills, support and guidance in all areas of business.

Come and join is for a coffee and free breakfast at our meeting in Newport. Contact us at secretary@island businessnetwork.co.uk to reserve your place.

09/10/2026

Island Business Network - grow your business through the power of networking. 🤝

IBN is a collection of business people who pass business and referrals to fellow members. Business here is very often obtained by personal recommendation and word-of-mouth.

We only admit one member per trade or profession, so make sure you join and benefit before a competitor does.

Our Visitors Day is coming up on Thursday 15th October, 07:00 - 08:30. Come and meet us and enjoy coffee and a free breakfast with like-minded business people. Contact us at secretary@island business network.co.uk to book your place.

08/10/2026

At this week's meeting of Island Business Network we heard from new member Hannah Woodford of Emerald Elite VA Services.

She provided a great overview of the various services she can support business with and told us that her dream referral is "a sole trader or small business owner who is trying to do everything themselves and burning themselves out because they think getting help means committing to an employee."

She has been running the business for 2.5 years now and shared with us that she has learned that growth isn't about saying yes to everything; it's about knowing what fits, setting boundaries and recognising that finding the right clients is more important that having a full schedule. Wise words! 😊

Hearing in detail about each members business really helps us provide referrals for them; that's why we are here after all.

Louise Rippon shared her Purpose of IBN with the group and
Mark Hayward Cert CII told us about his ideal client (which is all of us 😉)

Our Director closed the meeting with this quote from Peter Drucker:

"The best way to predict the future is to create it."

Reflection: rather than waiting for the perfect opportunity, what's one conversation, one decision or one action you could take this week that moves your business forward? 🤔

We meet every Thursday 07:00 - 08:30 in Newport. If you would like to join us as a visitor, please email us at [email protected].

Andrew Nordbruch Alison Thorogood Amber Beard Ben Silk Blake Nash CAROLE LAMBERT Claire Beasley David Ross Gavin Kelly Harry Walls James Tregoning Martha James Nicholas Gale Paul Spreadbury Rebecca Taylor Stuart Vass Suzy MorrisTom Durman Vicki Sitch

05/10/2026

At this week's meeting we are looking forward to hearing from new member, Hannah Woodford, owner of Emerald Elite VA Services. Their services include bookkeeping, data entry, sales and purchase ledger processing, basic payroll management, diary management and much more. 😊

Visitors are welcome every week but twice a year we hold a Visitors Day and the next one is Thursday, 15th October, 07:00 - 08:30. If you would like to join us see the details in the graphic.

So what are the reasons to join Island Business Network?

✅ Like-minded people - everyone at IBN owns or runs a business on the Isle of Wight and attends IBN to help their business grow

✅ Break out of your comfort zone - it can feel daunting at first but meeting and being confident in front of a group of people is a fantastic skill to master

✅ Meet experts and leaders face to face - each IBN member gets the opportunity to present in front of the group and share their knowledge and expertise

✅ Networking Opportunities - people buy from people and IBN gives you the opportunity to meet business owners from across the Isle of Wight

We want to grow our dynamic group with many, many trades and business represented. Below are a few examples of businesses we would like to attract.

Address

John Cheverton Centre, Mountbatten Hospice, Halberry Lane
Newport
PO302ER

Opening Hours

7am - 8:30am

Telephone

+447712569886

Website

http://www.islandbusinessnetwork.co.uk/contact.html

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