The story of ONLE
James and Kelly West, founders of ONLE Networking
It all started when…
James met Kelly at a networking event in 2014. After getting married and setting up their web design business, they turned their attention back to the forum that brought them together: business networking.
The idea was simple: could they take the parts of networking that had given them business, friendship and support, while removing the parts of networking that get in the way of running a business?
The first ONLE Networking meeting took place in January 2018. Of the 18 people that attended, 17 joined.
Find out why ONLE embraced online-first networking to safeguard the people-first network
Within two years, ONLE Networking reached the 200 member mark. ONLE Online was introduced in 2019 as a way to grow the ONLE community nationally and then internationally.
2020 - the networking ‘flip’
When the world went into lockdown, ONLE boldly embraced online networking. But rather than using it as a stop-gap, ONLE applied lessons learned while running ONLE Online to ensure that the meetings were cohesive and continued to deliver value.
Because of this success, ONLE became the first network to ‘flip’ the usual way of networking by becoming an online network. Rather than meeting in-person being the starting point, online networking means connections are made online and members then choose who they want to meet in-person. This way, ONLE is the network that excludes no one based on their location or ability to make in-person meetings, while expanding its geography faster than even before.
2022 - ONLE goes global
With geography no longer a barrier to networking, ONLE decided to test the concept by launching ONLE New York. With many businesses already working globally, the only element lacking was a central forum to meet people in other countries. Why New York? As well as being one of the world’s great business hubs, New York is also the place where Kelly and James got married, neatly connecting the practical and personal elements of business which have been so central to the success of ONLE.
2023 - another milestone and another US group
As the world adapted to this online-first approach, in June 2023 ONLE membership exceeded 350 members while the addition of ONLE Atlanta added another hub for US members to connect with each other and business on the other side of the Atlantic meaning that ONLE had truly broken the traditionally tiny reach of networking.
KELLY WEST
We both benefitted enormously from networking before we met, but we realised that some elements of business networking were either off-putting for newcomers or put unnecessary pressure on members. We wanted to attend a professional networking business that valued meaningful relationships and collaboration over everything. When we launched ONLE to such a positive response, it was clear that others felt the same!
JAMES WEST
We founded ONLE Networking in 2018 so everyone could experience the kind of networking that changed our lives. At networking, we gained business, friendship and support, and to top it off, we met while networking! But we also saw that business networking often imposes rules that get in the way of building relationships. By removing negative elements, we've seen members relax, build genuine connections and have created a supportive, collaborative community.