The event is being run by the
British Polish Chamber and Polish Business Link with event partners: Conby
Pol-Plan Insurance, TurnerLaw and MoneyGram, plus support from DFDS and BC
Printing.
Congress co-organiser (with the
British Polish Chamber of Commerce) and founder of Polish Business Link,
Bartlomiej Kowalczyk says, "For the first time, Polish entrepreneurs from
across Britain will meet in London for a national congress to learn from one another,
to inspire one another, to network together, sharing stories of business
success. The Congress for Polish
Entrepreneurs in the UK is a culmination of several years of work within the
Polish entrepreneur community. It will also be a celebration of Polish
entrepreneurs' contribution to the UK economy.”
Polish entrepreneurs have rapidly established themselves
across the UK in the ten years since Poland joined the EU. Today, more than
21,000 Poles have set up nearly 22,000 companies in the UK, while another
65,000 Poles are self-employed. According to research by the Centre for
Entrepreneurs think tank and financial technology company, DueDil, Poles are
the sixth largest nationality to set up businesses in the UK, behind Ireland,
India or USA, but ahead of France, Italy, Australia or Holland.
Kowalczyk says: “Since I have been
here, I have witnessed the unexpected side-effect of Britain opening its labour
market to Poles in May 2004. Tens of thousands of entrepreneurs from Poland
have set up business in the UK. Most are still micro-businesses, though the
more dynamic ones are expanding and taking on new employees. Typically, these
firms are run by people who are taking responsibility for their own livelihoods
rather than seeking work from an employer, and are busy creating new wealth for
themselves and for the UK economy.
“The scale of this boom in Polish
businesses is evident across the UK. Spalding in Lincolnshire for example has
four Polish-owned hairdressing salons. There are many hundreds of Polish
grocery shops around the country, plus thousands of Polish-run construction
companies, painting and decorating businesses, tax and legal consultancies, IT
and media firms, plus active Polish entrepreneurs across many other business
sectors.
“The one-day Congress
will focus on such issues as funding for business start-ups and growth, legal,
tax and financial issues facing entrepreneurs in the UK, as well as marketing and
HR. It will also provide practical insight into the UK economy. The Congress
will be attended by some of the most successful Polish entrepreneurs operating
in the UK who will want to share their experience with the participants. An
inseparable part of the Congress is the networking session, which will provide
all the participants with a great opportunity to make invaluable business
contacts.”
Michael Dembinski, Chief Adviser to the British Polish
Chamber of Commerce says:
“This event will be a chance for Polish entrepreneurs up and
down the country to get together in London and discuss issues of mutual
interest. The event is about spreading quality information invaluable to
entrepreneurs wishing to grow their businesses in the UK and about networking .
Many of my parents' generation who settled in the UK after World War II were
entrepreneurs, but they never got together – which was a shame. A network is as
strong as the square of the number of its members, no entrepreneur is an
island. The UK can benefit greatly from the presence of such a large number of
business start-ups if they grow, flourish, create wealth and jobs. We want to
help them do so.”
ENDS
Photos/logos available
here
For further information or
comment, please contact:
UK Contact: Bartlomiej Kowalczyk, founder &
director, Polish Business Link (+44 1312026881, + 44 7842613016, bart.k@pblink.co.uk, twitter: @pb_link,
@BartekKowalczyk,
Poland Contact, Michael Dembinski, Chief Advisor, British Polish Chamber of
Commerce (+48 606969200 / Michael.dembinski@bpcc.org.pl, twitter: @policies4poland)
Official Congress
website: http://pblink.co.uk/congress
Key Data
-
According to Centre of Entrepreneurs more than 21,000
Poles have set up nearly 22,000 companies in the UK, while another 65,000 Poles
are self-employed.
-
According to Census 2011 The Polish-born population in
England and Wales increased nine-fold between 2001 and 2011, more than any
other country.
-
There are 579,000 Polish people living in England and
Wales, in Scotland 55,000 and 17,700 in Northern Ireland
-
Polish is the UK’s second language
About Polish Business
Link, http://pblink.co.uk/en/
Polish Business Link is a business network for Polish and
British SMEs wishing to find business partners (distributors, franchisees and
investors) in both Poland and the UK. The pblink.co.uk B2B platform offers
business classifieds, business news, event registration, download section and
membership.
Polish Business Link organises regular Polish Business
Seminar Mixers across UK. Video Releases: http://pblink.co.uk/en/video-en
About the British
Polish Chamber of Commerce, http://www.bpcc.org.pl
The BPCC has over 400 member companies across Poland and the
UK. Working actively with the UKTI, the chamber helps British SME exporters
enter the Polish market, as well as working with Polish Business Link to
support Polish entrepreneurs in the UK. The BPCC has been recognised as the
best British chamber in continental Europe no fewer than four times within the
past decade by the Council of British Chambers of Commerce in Continental
Europe.
The BPCC engages with high-profile partners such as the
chambers network in the UK, the CBI and IoD, Federation of Small Businesses,
UKTI, British Embassy in Warsaw and Polish Embassy in London as well as many
Polish business organisations and government bodies.
About Bartlomiej
Kowalczyk: Linkedin profile
Entrepreneur, marketer, professional media planner and event
manager. Qualified to the university degree in Economics and CIM Professional
Diploma in Marketing. Since 2010 running Edinburgh-based Polish marketing
agency Picklemedia Consultancy Ltd. Also founder of Polish Business Link,
online information and networking hub for Polish and British entrepreneurs,
distributors, franchisees and investors.
About Michael
Dembinski: Linkedin profile
Michael Dembinski was born in London in 1957. He studied at
Warwick University and The City University, and worked at the Confederation of
British Industry – for nine years as
editor of CBI News, the monthly magazine of the employers' organisation.
Michael moved to Poland with his family in 1997 to take up the job of
communications director of Polska Telewizja Kablowa - now part of UPC Polska,
then worked as managing director of Trader.Com Polska - now a part of Agora SA.
He has worked with the British Polish Chamber of Commerce since 2002.
Links
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/jan/30/polish-becomes-englands-second-language
http://www.migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/briefings/scotland-census-profile