A business networking group in Teignbridge has celebrated its first anniversary.

Coffee Connections, which was established by the Dawlish Chamber of Trade, aims to provide an informal and friendly space for businesses in the area to connect with each other.

Dawlish Chamber set up Coffee Connections to cater for local businesspeople who were unable to attend its successful breakfast club, which launched early in 2024.

Melinda McDougall who runs Purple Swan launched the networking groups after joining Dawlish Chamber of Trade. ‘I had attended lots of networking events when I lived and worked in London and was looking for a group local to Dawlish,’ she said. ‘I wanted to create something informal where people could just mingle without having to worry about preparing a speech,’ she added. ‘Since setting up the Dawlish Business Breakfast and Coffee Connections, Melinda has seen the development of ‘lots of friendships as well as business connections’.

Both Coffee Connections and the Business Breakfast attract professionals not just from Dawlish but all over the south west with regular attendees travelling from Exeter, Newton Abbot, Teignmouth and Plymouth.

Anne Gilkes, an NLP business coach who has attended Coffee Connections since its inception, said: ‘It’s a really enjoyable and friendly network to meet local professionals and business owners and it’s been great for making meaningful connections and it’s very accessible and inclusive.’

Coffee Connections meets on the first Thursday of the month at either the Hope Café or Claremont Manor Care Home. Tickets to attend are free of charge and available via Eventbrite.

‘A huge amount of thanks has to go to the Hope Café and Claremont Grove for supporting us with Coffee Connections,’ Melinda noted.