Digital showcase to take place in Eastbourne

DigiFest, organised by Chalk, will take place all day on Friday, September 22, at the Welcome Building to showcase the town’s digital talent and give visitors the opportunity to chat with digital professionals, make new connections, find work opportunities and build partnerships.

Organisers Chalk Eastbourne – a business-led initiative started in 2020 and run by custom software specialists Switchplane - also hopes the event will kick-start a push to grow the total of digital jobs in Eastbourne to 10,000.

DigiFest event organiser Sarah Cronk said: “Eastbourne DigiFest is not just about celebrating the thriving digital sector in our town, but also about supporting its growth and contributing to the local economy.

“Our aim is to establish digital as a third sector after hospitality and tourism, and to create more employment opportunities and innovative businesses in the area.

“With a target of 10,000 digital jobs in Eastbourne, we believe that events like DigiFest can help to achieve this goal by bringing together businesses, professionals and students to showcase the best of what our town has to offer.”

Eastbourne’s Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate Josh Babarinde added: “DigiFest will bring together local tech innovators to share best practice and forge new partnerships to pave the way for even more digital jobs in our town.

“Packed full of energy and ideas, DigiFest will well and truly prove that Eastbourne is on the up and at the forefront of the economy’s growing digital sector.”

There will be talks, workshops, tours and an exhibition at the event, as well as the opportunity to network and enjoy a drink with other attendees.

Speakers include Will Callaghan from TechResort, Phil Jones from Wired Sussex, Charlie Mercer from COADEC, Ethan Brierley from TrueLayer, Adam Wallis from PRG, Grace Prior from Diverse Sussex/Silicon Brighton, Dan Wallman from Technative Digital, Kim Byford from Talent Accelerator, Donna Harfield from ESCG, Lewis Hobden from Switchplane and Russ Miles. The compere will be Garry James.

Early bird tickets, which cost £15, are on sale from April 24 and other tickets cost £17.50. All tickets include a sandwich lunch.

A limited number of free student tickets are also being made available next week.

To book, and for more information, visit https://www.eastbournedigifest.com/

If you are interested in sponsoring or exhibiting, email: [email protected]

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