A DIVERSE range of businesses across the borough – from companies, charities, events and sports clubs – come together every Monday evening from the comfort of their favourite chairs….
Now in its fifth year, Oldham Hour was launched by a handful of local business owners in April 2014, using social media platform Twitter and the hastag #OldhamHour.
Users gather in one electronic meeting place every Monday between 9pm-10pm so they can talk to each other, ask for help and share news of services and events they’re involved in.
Users can search #OldhamHour to interact with others and check local news without having to trawl the Twitter timeline. The account is now followed by over 6,500 others and had over 130,000 impressions last month.
And as they celebrate their birthday, Oldham Hour is also moving away from the keyboard and launching a meet-up on the second Friday of each month to bring followers together for a relaxing chat and catch up.
The events so far have been attended by solicitors, schools, designers, bar owners, sport clubs, estate agents, IT providers, leisure providers, council representatives, charities, and many others – providing a great mix of the Oldham community.
Lee Hollinworth, from Whittaker Design and the host of Oldham Hour, explained: “Many people interact each week under the ethos of ‘Get Oldham Talking’.
“There is quite a lot of banter, but in the main, sharing of information about events and business opportunities in the area.
“As you would expect it’s a friendly meeting place for businesses, event organisers and the people of Oldham.
“Many participants have gained good connections and are now working together or refer work to each other or have simply gained new clients.”
Jean Hurls from Oldham Street Angels praised Oldham Hour, saying: “Linking into @OldhamHour has transformed our organisation.
“We’ve received so much support, gifts and volunteers. We feel humbled and proud to be part of the community.”
Chris Stansfield from Broken Pencil added: “#Oldhamhour is like networking without thinking about it, chatting with friends rather than stuffy business meetings, and best of all, it works!”
And Linda Lewis, from Linda Lewis Kitchens, said: “Oldham Hour has been great for LLK.
“Most people don’t know of the services we provide but Oldham Hour has given us a platform to engage with audiences outside of the catering and hospitality sector.”
For more information on how you can join the Oldham Hour group and help your business, charity, club, or anything Oldham grow, then go online: www.oldhamhour.co.uk or find them on Twitter.
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