KBSA announces host and keynote speaker for its KBB Industry Conference 2027

The KBSA has confirmed part of the line-up for its 2027 KBB Industry Conference, with broadcast journalist Emma Crosby hosting the day and entrepreneur and investor Sarah Willingham delivering the keynote speech.

The event takes place on Thursday 13th May 2027 at The Belfry Hotel and Resort in the Midlands. It is the first KBSA conference since the association moved the event from its traditional autumn slot to spring, a change designed to give retailers a date that does not compete with product launches, the German exhibitions and the run-up to Christmas trading.

Emma Crosby will chair the conference programme. A Sky News and CNBC presenter, she fronted Channel 5’s flagship news programme for 5 years and co-anchored GMTV. She began her career in business journalism at CNBC in London and New York, and covered the 2008 financial crisis as business correspondent for Sky News, where her team won a BAFTA for its coverage of the Glasgow Airport attack. She moderates conferences and hosts awards for organisations including Barclays, HSBC, BP, Virgin and the IoD.

Sarah Willingham will give the keynote speech. She led international growth for PizzaExpress and Planet Hollywood, bought Bombay Bicycle Club and built it into the UK’s largest Indian restaurant chain, and co-founded Neutrahealth, which she took public. She invested on BBC Two’s Dragons’ Den, where her backing of Sublime Science produced one of the programme’s most successful exits, and she now chairs the Tonkotsu restaurant group. Her session will speak directly to the growth and margin questions facing independent retailers.

Luke Wedgbury, KBSA interim chair, said: “We have booked two people who know how to hold a room and, just as importantly, know how to make a business audience think. Emma will keep the day sharp and Sarah has actually built and sold the kind of businesses our members are trying to grow, so will provide invaluable advice. Moving to May gives retailers a date they can plan around, and this line-up is the reason to put it in the diary now.”