It’s a Sell-Out!
Published: 16 June 2025
It was a real pleasure to open Sevenoaks Business Show on Friday. Held at Bat & Ball Community Centre, this year’s event was a complete sell-out and we ended up having to turn potential exhibitors away.
The range of businesses and community organisations taking part this year was bigger than ever - finance and legal services, business technology support, community entertainment, sport, care and wellbeing, local manufacturing as well as retailers on our High Street. It was great to welcome Kent Police and a new security business to this year’s event, as well as several charities and not-for-profit organisations.
Of course, there are national pressures, especially on small and medium enterprises, but our latest survey of Sevenoaks town centre business premises shows an occupancy rate over 95%, well above national and regional averages. New businesses are arriving across the town, in the centre and at the local centres in Hollybush, St Johns, and Greatness to serve residents and support our economy. The show was a chance to celebrate some of them.
We’re doing well partly thanks to the Town Team which puts much hard work into making Sevenoaks look its best. That’s on top of investment by Sevenoaks Town Council, which has published a Masterplan for St Johns and a draft Town Centre Masterplan to give us a framework for longer term investment, and by local business representatives working on a Business Improvement District to give local enterprise a direct say on future development.
And special thanks to the show’s sponsors, Clive Emson, Berry & Lamberts, Sevenoaks District Chamber of Commerce, NFU Mutual, FM Conway, Specsavers - and my colleagues at the Town Council. Your support is a vote of confidence in Sevenoaks enterprise, and a contribution towards its future.
Cllr Tony Clayton
Mayor of Sevenoaks