The 2025 BMF All Industry Conference takes place later this month, with a packed agenda that will tackle a number of the key issues facing the building materials sector. PBM details some of the highlights delegates can expect to encounter in Barcelona.
With its theme of Building Tomorrow Together, this year’s BMF-hosted All Industry Conference sees delegates heading to the five-star Torre Melina hotel in Barcelona for an intensive long weekend of industry discussion and networking. Covering vital topics such as risk management, attracting and retaining talent, decarbonisation and digitisation, the future of housebuilding will also be a central focus of the event whilst the evergreen ‘meet the merchant’ sessions (under their more formal title of ‘Merchant / Supplier Connections’) will facilitate the opportunities to create and develop beneficial business relationships.
The venue is a mere Carles Puyol clearance away from the world-famous Camp Nou Stadium, the home of one of Europe’s largest and most successful football clubs — FC Barcelona. Appropriately enough, the iconic ground is currently in the midst of a major refurbishment — with the total cost rumoured to be an estimated 1.5 billion euros — providing a perfect example of the prime importance of the construction industry in terms of economic growth, supporting jobs, improving infrastructure and creating communities.
Hosting duties will be provided by broadcaster and presenter Mark Durden-Smith, who returns to the stage following a stellar turn at the previous BMF All Industry Conference in Istanbul in 2023. Mark will facilitate a carefully crafted business programme, comprising an enticing and interactive mix of presentations, panel sessions and workshops featuring expert speakers from the industry and beyond.
Maintaining a decade-plus BMF Conference tradition, Harriet Harman KC follows in the footsteps of political heavyweight speakers to address the event, including Michael Portillo (2013), Alistair Campbell (2015), Paddy Ashdown (2017), John Prescott (2019), John Bercow (2021) and Alan Johnson (2023). Representing the diverse inner-city constituency of Camberwell and Peckham as the Labour MP from 1982 to 2024, her distinguished parliamentary career now continues in the House of Lords having been appointed as a life Peer last year.
And with the Labour government targeting a significant increase in the delivery of new homes, housebuilding is high on the agenda this year. Accordingly, Taylor Wimpey plc CEO Jennie Daly CBE and Neil Jefferson, Chief Executive of the Home Builders Federation will each be addressing the conference and will subsequently participate in a Q&A session on this crucial subject.
Joining the panel to speak from the merchant sector perspective will be John Carter, CEO of STARK Building Materials UK, alongside Joe Tipper, Director at West Midlands-based independent merchant Tippers.
Offering a broader business viewpoint, Ellis Watson will provide perspectives from his varied executive career, during which he has turned-around, rebranded, overhauled, reinvigorated and expanded global businesses from entertainment to transport including The Sun, Celador International, John Menzies, Syco and subsequently serving as Chief Business Advisor to the First Minister of Scotland, shaping the government’s private sector strategy.
Lastly, Rebecca Adlington OBE will share her experiences as an Olympic Gold Medallist and her sporting career as Great Britain’s most successful female swimmer.
The 2025 BMF All Industry Conference takes place in Barcelona from 12-15 June 2025. Delegates are asked to download the bespoke app for the event whilst more information can be found via www.bmfconference2025.co.uk
