Paul Coupar-Hennessy - Business Advisor

Paul advises pre-start and newly opened businesses. He has seen the startup journey as both an advisor and a founder. Formerly Creative Director of a marketing and content agency, he advised businesses from pre-start through to FTSE 100 companies, such as Experian and Siemens.

Steve Carroll - Growth Advisor

Meet Steve. One of our growth advisors. Steve knows that business owners are great salespeople, engineers, technologists etc. but that they don’t necessarily have experience in running a business. He’s here to help.

Opteran: Honeybee brains inspiring autonomous machines

Based on eight years of research into insect brains by Sheffield University’s Professor Marshall and Dr Cope, Opteran was then launched in 2020 as a spin-out from the university’s Department of Computer Science.

Toranj International Halal Supermarket Case Study

Mohsin Farmanieh and his wife Fatemeh opened Toranj in the Moor Market in June 2021. COVID-19 made it a challenging time to open a new business, but far from being held back, the pair were keen to expand into a high street shop front.

Music

The Home of Football

When most people think Sheffield and football, their first thoughts are probably towards the city’s two current biggest clubs, Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday, little do they know the city’s crucial role in establishing this international sport, which is now played and adored around the globe.

Success stories

Business Sheffield, together with Launchpad and other business support services in the city, have helped a number of local start ups and scale ups succeed in their ambitions.

ISU Figure Skating European Championships 2026

Sheffield will be hosting the ISU European Figure Skating Championships 2026 on the 13 - 18 January 2026.

Getting to and around the city centre

Traveling into and around the city centre is being made easier. The Connecting Sheffield: City Centre scheme has various projects to improve walking, cycling, and public transport.

Festival of Fun

Hosted by the Children's University each year, the Festival of Fun offers a huge programme of activities and workshops for children across Sheffield to get involved with throughout the summer school holidays.