COMPANIES from across the South are racing to book tickets to hear Lord Coe address the first Echo-backed Leepeckgreenfield Business Masterclass next week.

Tickets for the event are selling out fast and many big name companies have booked their places, including large regional firms Barratt Homes and VT Group.

Leepeckgreenfield managing director Sue Thomas said there had been an enthusiastic response to the masterclass which is being held at the Macdonald Botley Park Hotel on Wednesday November 2, 3pm.

"Bookings have been flooding in and we are delighted with the range of businesses taking part,'' she said.

"We've had a wide range of key business people securing their places, from major companies to small and medium size enterprises from right across the region."

Lord Coe is the architect of London's successful 2012 Olympics bid which will see some of Britain's best medal contenders going for gold in the sailing events at Weymouth.

Lord Coe's keynote speech will highlight the way the successful Olympic bid was put together and how companies can benefit from the lessons learned.

Joining Leepeckgreenfield in organising the Masterclass series are the Royal Bank of Scotland, the Royal Yachting Association and the Macdonald Botley Park Hotel which is hosting the event in its brand new state of the art conference centre.

Bookings for the first Business Masterclass can be made by logging onto www.businessmasterclass.co.uk or by calling Leepeckgreenfield on 023 8076 3290.

First published: October 27