On Monday, January 8, 2018, BNI® celebrated 33 years of growth. The first official meeting of The Network, the original name of BNI, was held by Dr. Ivan Misner in January 1985 in Arcadia, California. This founding Chapter was launched with over 20 Members.
By the end of 1985, BNI had expanded to 20 chapters. Since then, over 229,000 business professionals around the world have found their referral network through BNI. Operating in 70+ countries, with nearly 8,300 networking meetings a week, BNI is truly the world’s leading referral organization. In 2017 alone, our member businesses generated over $13.6 billion USD in referred business for one another.
To learn more about BNI’s rich 33-year history, visit our history timeline here.
