Humber Business Week chair Kath Lavery to step down after 14 years at helm

direction” in future years. She has been involved in every Humber Business Week since its inception in 2004, when she was appointed to a steering group in her role as Hull City Council cabinet member for Business and the Economy.

A spokesman said: “The week was the brainchild of founder Paul Sewell, who had previously helped bring the Yorkshire International Business Convention (YIBC) – an event which attracted world-leading figures as speakers – to Hull for one day in 2003. He built on that success and steered the week through growth each year until 2009, when Mrs Lavery took the reins as chair.”

"Humber Business Week has been staged in the first week of June every year since, only missing from the annual calendar in 2020, when the country was under tight social distancing rules due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It returned in 2021 with an event largely held online, before last year saw a return to a packed week of face-to-face events.”

Mrs Lavery said: “Business Week always evolves each year naturally to reflect the issues affecting business. That is the beauty of it, we’ve never tried to force it down a theme or topic.”

"The fact that businesses choose the events and topics ensures it remains relevant.”

The Humber Business Week 2023 programme will be officially launched on Thursday April 20, at the Lexington Rooftop Bar & Terrace in the Doubletree by Hilton, Hull. This year’s event runs from Monday June 5 to Friday June 9.