Is the event free to attend?

Yes, the event is free. Food, drink and the venue are covered by sponsors Enjoy Digital, Pixelbuilders and MSQ DX.

Where exactly is the venue?

IDHL, First Floor, 10 South Parade, Leeds city centre, West Yorkshire. A short walk from Leeds train station.

Do I need to register in advance?

Yes. Registration is through the Meetup.com event page for Umbraco Leeds Meetup. Sign up there to secure your place.

Who is this event aimed at?

Developers, technical architects and project managers involved in CMS selection or implementation on .NET projects. You don't need to be an Umbraco user — the evening covers all three platforms.

Yes. Pizza and refreshments are provided from 6pm, sponsored by Enjoy Digital, Pixelbuilders (who have also promised cake) and MSQ DX.

meetup · one-off

.NET CMS Showdown: Three Platforms, One Discussion

Name: .NET CMS Showdown: Three Platforms, One Discussion
Start: 2026-05-07T17:00:00.000Z
Location: IDHL

Umbraco, Kentico and Optimizely MVPs in one room, one night

When

Thursday 7 May

Time

18:00

Venue

IDHL

City Centre

Price

Free

Reserve a spot →

Three .NET CMS platforms, three MVPs, one open forum. On Thursday 7 May 2026, Umbraco Leeds Meetup brings together Andy Boot (Umbraco MVP), Liam Goldfinch (Kentico MVP) and Graham Carr (Optimizely OMVP) at IDHL's offices on South Parade for a structured comparison evening.

Each speaker gets ten minutes to cover their platform's key features, available products, AI capabilities and what sets it apart. After that, the floor opens for a Q&A covering anything from technical architecture and editor experience to licensing models, hosting options and real-world implementation headaches. The format is deliberately conversational — the organisers are clear this is not about crowning a winner.

The evening runs 6pm to 8pm, with pizza and mingling from 6pm before the presentations kick off at 6:30pm. It's aimed at developers, technical architects and project managers who are either mid-evaluation or just keeping an eye on what the .NET CMS market looks like in 2026. Sponsors Enjoy Digital, Pixelbuilders and MSQ DX are covering the venue, food and drink.

Umbraco Leeds Meetup has been running events for the .NET CMS community in Leeds for several years. The group draws a mix of agency developers, in-house engineers and freelancers who work with content management systems day to day. Events are free and typically held in central Leeds venues with industry sponsors covering costs.

IDHL, the digital marketing group, is hosting at their First Floor offices at 10 South Parade — a short walk from Leeds city centre rail and bus connections. Pixelbuilders are also credited as venue sponsors, with cake promised.

Why attend

Getting three platform MVPs in the same room at the same time is genuinely unusual. If you're currently evaluating CMS options for a .NET project, or advising a client who is, this is a more efficient use of an evening than three separate vendor calls.

The open forum format means you can ask the awkward questions — pricing, migration pain, AI integration reality versus marketing copy — and hear the answers compared side by side. Pizza is included. Networking runs until 8pm, so there's time to follow up with the speakers directly afterwards.

Agenda

18:00 — Mingling and pizza
18:30 — .NET CMS Showdown: 10-minute presentations from Andy Boot (Umbraco), Liam Goldfinch (Kentico) and Graham Carr (Optimizely), followed by open Q&A
20:00 — Open social and networking

Speakers

Andy Boot — Umbraco MVP
Liam Goldfinch — Kentico MVP
Graham Carr — Optimizely OMVP

Organiser

Umbraco Leeds Meetup

Umbraco Leeds Meetup is a community group for .NET CMS practitioners in West Yorkshire. They run free evening events in central Leeds covering Umbraco and the broader .NET content management ecosystem. Events are sponsored by local and national digital agencies and are open to developers, architects and project managers at any level.

Venue

IDHL, City Centre

IDHL occupies the first floor at 10 South Parade in Leeds city centre. The digital marketing group has hosted tech community events at the space before, and it's within easy walking distance of Leeds train station.

FAQs

Is the event free to attend?: Yes, the event is free. Food, drink and the venue are covered by sponsors Enjoy Digital, Pixelbuilders and MSQ DX.
Where exactly is the venue?: IDHL, First Floor, 10 South Parade, Leeds city centre, West Yorkshire. A short walk from Leeds train station.
Do I need to register in advance?: Yes. Registration is through the Meetup.com event page for Umbraco Leeds Meetup. Sign up there to secure your place.
Who is this event aimed at?: Developers, technical architects and project managers involved in CMS selection or implementation on .NET projects. You don't need to be an Umbraco user — the evening covers all three platforms.
Will there be food?: Yes. Pizza and refreshments are provided from 6pm, sponsored by Enjoy Digital, Pixelbuilders (who have also promised cake) and MSQ DX.