CREATIVE firms in North Staffordshire could get the chance to link up with their counterparts all over the world when a quirky networking concept arrives in the city.

Later this year Hanley will play host to Stoke-on-Trent's first Pecha Kucha night, which gives entrepreneurs the chance to give an informal presentation on anything they want to publicise.

The concept, developed by Tokyo architects Klein Dytham, has travelled to more than 220 cities across the world and Stoke-on-Trent organiser Mark Brereton hopes that if it takes off here, participants could link up with their counterparts elsewhere in the UK and even abroad.

Pecha Kucha, which derives from the Japanese term for 'chit-chat', allows people just over six-and-half minutes to present a 20-image slideshow.

Mr Brereton, a freelance graphic designer based in Burslem, is putting on a Pecha Kucha night with colleagues Bernard Charnley, Anna Francis and Brian Holdcroft.

He said: "I saw the event take place the first time they held one in the UK in Manchester in 2003.

"I lost contact with it for a while because I was in the process of moving back from London, but I thought it would be good to have something like that in Stoke so I wrote to the organisers in Tokyo.

"They said it sounded great – it's not the size of the city they're worried about, it's more the kind of place it is."

Mr Brereton added that the event, which takes place at the Fat Cat Cafe, in Hanley, in November, will be free to take part in and free to attend.

He said: "The concept was originally aimed at the creative sector, like designers and architects, but as it's developed more and more different businesses have got involved.

"You can give a presentation on absolutely anything. It gives people an opportunity to speak about whatever they want – it could be something very specific about your own business, or something you feel passionate about.

"The idea behind it is to showcase what you do in terms of your work or talent in an informal meeting place.

"We had a tester a couple of weeks ago which 30 or 40 people attended, just to check we were doing everything right. It went really well and everyone was really excited about it."

He added: "Not only will it benefit the city, it also opens up the possibility of networking with other cities which are involved. Perhaps we could organise an exchange where people from Stoke-on-Trent visit Pecha Kucha events in other cities, and vice-versa. It could be a real global exchange."

Pecha Kucha nights are currently being held in around 225 cities around the world, including Beijing, Jakarta, London, Madrid, Rome and Washington DC.

The concept is the brainchild of architects Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham, who run Klein Dytham in Tokyo.

A spokesman said: "Pecha Kucha was conceived in 2003 as a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.

"But as we all know, give a mic to a designer – especially an architect – and you'll be trapped for hours.

"The key to Pecha Kucha night is its patented system for avoiding this fate. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

"Pecha Kucha has tapped into a demand for a forum in which creative work can be easily and informally shown."

Pecha Kucha takes place on November 13 at The Fat Cat Cafe in Hanley from 7pm. Anyone interested in taking part has until 5pm on Tuesday, September 8 to submit 200 words on what they want to talk about and why to stokepechakucha@yahoo.co.uk

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