LOCAL Businesses in the Chilterns were promoting their goods and services at a special event organised in Chesham recently.o

The event was organised by an off-shoot of the Amersham and District Chamber of Commerce, Chiltern Leads, which promotes the Chilterns as a place to do business.

This was the third time it had organised the networking event Business for Business 2001.

The exhibition, held on May 22 at the Elgiva Theatre, drew businessmen and women from all across south Bucks.

Eric Springate, chairman of the Amersham and District Chamber of Commerce and one of the event organisers, said: "We spent far more money and invested far more time on the event than ever before and it was our most successful.

"On an hour by hour basis there were relatively even numbers coming through the door."

He added the participants so far had reported good feedback.

He said: "People did business on the day as well as later.

"I run a marketing agency and the next day someone phoned me up and said he wanted to talk to me and a few days later I had a project."

Mr Springate said that the event was so successful that the initial 48 display areas were sold out two-and-a-half months before the event.

He said: "We had 55 participants. We put some extra stalls in the entrance.

"People did approach us on the day and say 'if you do this next year can you tell us?'."

The chamber attracted people to the event by compiling a database of 4,000 companies within a 15-mile radius of Chesham and Amersham.

They were all mailed in advance of the event.

"It looks as though we have a success on our hands", said Mr Springate.