At the turn of the millennium, the West Midlands was quietly laying the foundations for one of its most ambitious attempts to reposition itself as a serious centre for information technology, e-commerce and digital services. At the heart of this effort was the organisation commonly referred to locally as the Walsall Chamber of Commerce, but formally titled the East Mercia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, operating from Chamber of Commerce House in Ward Street, Walsall. During this period, the Chamber played a pivotal role in convening businesses, public bodies and emerging technology firms at a time when London dominated the national IT narrative.
The Chamber in Walsall and its leadership
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the East Mercia Chamber of Commerce acted as a central hub for business support across Walsall and the wider Black Country. Its Ward Street premises also housed Business Link Walsall, the government-backed advisory service designed to assist small and medium-sized enterprises with funding, skills development and growth strategies.
One of the most influential figures during this period was David Frost, who led the Chamber at a time of considerable change in business support structures. Frost later went on to become a senior national figure within the UK Chambers movement, but his tenure in Walsall coincided with an unusually proactive, outward-looking phase for the organisation. Under his leadership, the Chamber became closely involved in sector-specific initiatives, particularly those focused on information technology and e-commerce.
Business Link and the IT agenda
Business Link Walsall worked in close collaboration with the East Mercia Chamber to promote technology adoption among local firms. Workshops, advisory programmes and sector-focused events were designed to demystify IT, web development, e-commerce and systems integration for traditional businesses. This emphasis on practical delivery rather than abstract strategy fed directly into a much more ambitious regional concept.
The birth of go2westmidlands
In 2000, a new initiative was launched under the name go2westmidlands, often abbreviated to go2wm. The concept was both simple and bold: to bring together the West Midlands’ strongest independent IT and ICT service providers into a single, quality-driven network that could rival London-based suppliers.
The initiative emerged from growing concern that West Midlands businesses were routinely turning to the capital for IT expertise, despite the depth of talent available locally. go2westmidlands was initially founded by two members of the Walsall Chamber of Commerce, with active encouragement and practical support from the East Mercia Chamber itself. The Chamber’s involvement provided credibility, infrastructure and access to both public-sector partners and private-sector firms at a crucial stage in the project’s development.
The ambition was to create a trusted regional framework through which businesses could source everything from web design and e-commerce solutions to networking, hardware, software and consultancy under a single banner.
A high-profile launch at the National Motorcycle Museum
The public launch of go2westmidlands took place at the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull and was accompanied by significant regional publicity. The event was deliberately staged to generate confidence and attention at a time when many traditional businesses still viewed the digital economy with caution.
One of the main speakers and co-hosts at the launch was Peter Tomlinson, best known as a former children’s television presenter on the iconic Midlands programme Tiswas. His involvement brought familiarity and warmth to the occasion, helping to bridge the gap between technical subject matter and a wider business audience. The launch event helped position go2westmidlands not as an abstract technology project, but as a practical, accessible and regionally rooted initiative.
Companies involved in the initiative
By 2000–2001, go2westmidlands had attracted more than 20, and later over 30, member companies from across Birmingham, the Black Country and the wider West Midlands. These firms represented a broad cross-section of the ICT sector, including:
- Web design and development
- E-commerce platforms and online retail systems
- Network infrastructure and connectivity
- Hardware supply and installation
- Software development and bespoke applications
- Internet security and systems maintenance
- Digital media and multimedia services
- IT consultancy and project management
- IT recruitment and training
Companies named in contemporary material included Computime, Realcom Applications, Pagemasters, Stem Software, WebSprinter, Access Ten, Information Data Care Ltd, SMK Studio and Glen Sibley Consultancy Services, among others. Together, they demonstrated the breadth and depth of IT expertise available within the region.
Backing from Jungle.com and Steve Bennett
A significant endorsement for go2westmidlands came from Jungle.com, one of Britain’s fastest-growing dot-com businesses at the time. Its founder, Steve Bennett, was a Midlands-based entrepreneur whose success challenged the assumption that major e-commerce ventures had to be based in London.
Bennett publicly supported the initiative, encouraging regional IT firms to collaborate, promote themselves collectively and compete with confidence. His backing brought instant credibility and attracted national as well as regional attention, with coverage in the Birmingham Post and other business publications.
Regional agencies and public support
go2westmidlands worked closely with regional and national bodies including Advantage West Midlands, Coventry University Enterprises and programmes supported by the European Regional Development Fund. These relationships enabled the network to operate not merely as a commercial referral group, but as part of a wider regional economic strategy focused on skills development, digital adoption and SME competitiveness.
As the regional IT landscape evolved, it became clear that greater coordination was needed. go2westmidlands subsequently joined forces with another established group, the Regional IT Association (RITA), which was based at the Techno Park in Coventry and pursuing similar objectives. The two organisations were brought together under a new umbrella name: WMita – the West Midlands IT Association.
This merger marked an important step in consolidating the region’s IT sector, creating a single, more influential body capable of representing West Midlands technology businesses at regional and national level. WMita built directly on the foundations laid by both go2westmidlands and RITA, combining their memberships, experience and networks.
From regional network to national body
As WMita developed, its collaborative model and regional credibility helped shape what later became a national organisation now operating as the UK IT Association (UKITA). UKITA continues to represent technology and digital businesses across the UK, offering networking, advocacy and professional development through a national framework with strong regional origins.
UKITA’s work today can be seen at https://www.ukita.co.uk, providing a clear line of continuity from the original go2westmidlands vision: that regional IT firms, working together, can compete confidently on a national stage.
Legacy
Although the institutional landscape has changed since the early 2000s — with the East Mercia Chamber relocating from Ward Street to the Waterfront in Dudley, Business Link services being reorganised nationally, and many early dot-com era initiatives evolving or disappearing — the impact of go2westmidlands remains significant.
Long before “digital clusters” became standard policy language, a group of Midlands businesses, supported by their local Chamber of Commerce, demonstrated that regional collaboration could challenge London’s dominance. Through confidence, coordination and a strong sense of regional identity, go2westmidlands and its successor organisations helped ensure that the West Midlands IT sector spoke with a collective voice — one that still resonates in today’s national technology networks.
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