Flooded!
Sunday, August 5th, 2007 
Evesham BNI have been flooded out of house and home.
As usual for a Friday, on 20th July 2007 BNI Evesham met at the Northwick Hotel on the banks of the River Avon in Evesham. In accordance with BNI traditions the world-over, the meeting concluded at 8.30am and a number of members hung back conducting one-to-one meetings with visitors and other members. The meeting had been a good one. The group had generated several thousand pounds worth of business for each other in the form of referrals passed directly from member to member. A new member had applied to join and everyone was looking forward to getting back to work to follow up the business leads.
However, by 6.00pm that evening, The Northwick Hotel was front page news all over the world. The entire region had been flooded. 30 people were trapped by rising flood water in the Northwick Hotel and the pictures flashed across TV screens from London to Sydney.
In the following weeks, the effect on the BNI Chapter has been remarkable. Some members businesses were flooded others homes had been flooded and some left untouched by the devastation.
David Yates BNI Evesham Chapter Membership Secretary was one of those directly affected. “I run an award winning design business in Upton Upon Severn and we were engrossed in a particularly hectic day. Apart from the various projects on the go, we had received two new commissions for book cover designs from a contact at BNI. But by mid-afternoon my house had been flooded. I made my way back there from the studio and having done so the studio building became submerged in six feet of water.”
This story was a familar one all over the district. What was less familiar was the way the BNI network started to kick in.
David explained. “Within a day just about every member of BNI Evesham had contacted me. They had seen the studio on television being consumed by the floods. I was offered office space, living accomodation and unlimited support from just about everyone. This Flood will probably finish off many businesses, but thanks to the generosity and spirit of my colleagues at BNI Evesham, mine is not likely to be one of them.”
The Northwick Hotel, the BNI Evesham venue, however has faired less well. It will be out of action for a year at current estimates. However, BNI have been able to switch venues to the Vale Golf and Country Club between Evesham and Pershore. This means that the Chapter is looking to relaunch as a combined Pershore and Evesham chapter and grow its numbers to incorporate more businesses from both areas!