The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 11: Spring 2019 | Page 8

BUSINESS NEWS
BATH DIGITAL FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR 2019
Returning for its 7th year, Bath Digital Festival is back for
2019 from 22nd – 26th October.
This week-long celebration brings people and technology
together. It allows everyone to explore the thriving digital
scene here in Bath and get hands on experience with the
latest technological advances.
Whether you fancy trying your hand at coding, joining an
interactive workshop or just want to get your hands on the
latest tech, there will be plenty for everyone to take part in
and enjoy.
We met with Jim Morrison, Director of Bath Digital Festival
and CEO of digital agency Deep Blue Sky to find more about
this year’s series of events.
What can people expect from Bath
Digital Festival 2019? How can people and businesses
get involved?
That there’s something just right for them
- something that will blow their mind. Each
year we field over 100 speakers across
over 80 events and cover so many topics
and different levels there’s something to
fascinate every enquiring mind. The festival is a fantastic opportunity for
businesses to align their brand with their
specific audience. The festival only runs with
the support of local businesses so we work
really hard to make sure their sponsorship
delivers great value for money.
What are the key aims this year? Are you looking for any
specific support?
To reach the audiences that are harder
to reach; particularly we want to inspire
youngsters from the less affluent areas
of Bath. The festival exists to re-ignite the
creativity in everyone; especially the next
generation.
What are the themes?
We cover five themes each year; creativity,
work, tech for good, high-tech and kid’s
tech. This allows us to cover everything from
social media marketing to AI and ethics.
Yes. The two challenges we always have are
finding local businesses with the foresight
to get involved to promote themselves and
reaching schools, teachers and parents who
can see the benefits of getting their kids
involved.
How is the festival
changing for 2019?
The biggest change this year is that we’re
now in the process of formally registering as
a charity. This is part of the festival growing
up. After two huge years we are now keen
to ensure the sustainability of the festival for
the years to come. We’ve always been not-
for-profit so this is a natural next step.
What most excites you
about the festival?
The unexpected. Every day of the festival I
hear new stories of people who’ve taken the
path less travelled and discovered something
magical. Hearing that we discovered people
to reset their career expectations and
watching their personal growth makes it all
worthwhile.
How many people attend BDF
events each year?
We had around 2,500 attendances in 2018,
but we sold out quite a few events a couple
of months before the festival so I couldn’t
predict where we’ll get to this year.
How are you looking to
grow the audience?
To be honest, it comes down to the early
commitment of local companies to sponsor
the festival. Their commitment allows us to
book bigger venues earlier; venues we often
know we can fill.
Why did you get involved
in the festival?
We’ve always had a couple of digital
businesses in Bath and the festival was
started by Dave and Katrina Kelly at Storm
as a collaboration between like-minded local
digital businesses. We got more involved
in 2017 because we saw the potential to
grow the festival into something of great
long-term value for the whole of the local
community and economy.
For more info:
www.bathdigitalfestival.co.uk
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THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2019
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