If you scanned the QR code in our Wigan Borough Business Awards programme advert, welcome!
You probably recognised Wigan Pier. But did you recognise the man looking out across the canal?
Our advert wasn’t chosen simply because Wigan Pier is one of the borough’s best-known landmarks. There’s a story behind the image, one about Wigan’s industrial past, the people who kept the town moving and, above all, connection.
And that’s something that still matters to Wigan businesses today.
The Story of Wigan Pier
Wigan Pier may be famous around the country, but it was never a seaside pier like Blackpool or Southport.
Its story is rooted firmly in Wigan’s industrial heritage.
The Leeds and Liverpool Canal played an important role in transporting goods and materials during the area’s industrial growth. Around Wigan Pier, warehouses, mills, railway lines and waterways formed part of a busy transport network.
Coal and other cargo could be moved between land and canal boats, connecting Wigan with communities, businesses and industries much further afield.
The original structure associated with the name “Wigan Pier” was a coal-loading tippler. Railway wagons could be used to tip their contents into waiting canal boats below.
The original structure was demolished after it became redundant in 1929, although a replica was later created as part of the area’s heritage.
Of course, the name became known around the world thanks in part to George Orwell’s The Road to Wigan Pier, published in 1937.
But behind the famous name was something much more important:
people.
Who Is the Man in Our Advert?
Take another look at our advert, and you’ll see a man standing at the canal wall, looking towards Wigan Pier.
He’s The Bargee.
The life-size sculpture was created by artist Phil Songhurst and installed in the Wigan Pier area in 2008 as one of a series depicting working-class Wiganers.
A bargee was a worker associated with the canal boats that transported cargo along Britain’s waterways.
These workers were part of the network that kept industrial communities moving. Boats travelled along the canal carrying goods and materials, arriving at warehouses where cargo could be loaded and unloaded before continuing its journey.
It was physical work, but it was also an essential part of an enormous communication and transport network.
Long before emails, Microsoft Teams, smartphones, cloud telephone systems and fibre broadband, Wigan was already connected.
It simply looked very different.
Wigan Has Always Been About Connections
That’s what we love about the image.
The canal connected places.
The boats connected businesses.
The workers connected industries.
And the people connected communities.
Although the technology has changed beyond recognition, successful businesses still depend on many of those same principles today.
People need to be able to communicate. Customers need to be able to reach businesses. Colleagues need to work together. Information needs to get where it’s going quickly, securely and reliably.
Today, those connections aren’t carried along a canal.
They’re digital.
Connecting Wigan Businesses Today
At Digicomm 360, connecting businesses is what we do.
We support businesses across Wigan and beyond with the technology they rely on every day, including business telecoms, IT support, connectivity, mobile solutions and cybersecurity.
The tools may have changed since the days of the bargee, but the purpose hasn’t:
Keeping Wigan connected and keeping business moving.
We’re proud to work with businesses across the borough and even prouder to support an event that celebrates the people and organisations contributing to Wigan’s business community.
Celebrating Wigan Borough Business Awards 2026
This advert was created especially for the Wigan Borough Business Awards 2026, taking place on Saturday 26 September 2026 at The Brick Community Stadium.
The awards celebrate the innovation, achievement and collaboration found throughout Wigan Borough’s business community.
For us, that’s exactly what “Connecting Wigan Businesses” is about.
From the workers and industries that built Wigan’s past to the entrepreneurs, teams and businesses shaping its future, connection has always been part of the borough’s story.
Find out more about the Wigan Borough Business Awards 2026 and this year’s finalists, sponsors and celebrations.
Think You Know Wigan? Enter Our Competition
Now it’s your turn.
We’d love to know how well you know the place featured in our advert – and its history.
Complete the short form below, and you’ll be entered into our prize draw for the chance to win a £50 Amazon voucher*.
*Prize currently planned as a £50 Amazon voucher and is subject to change. Competition terms and closing date (3rd Oct 2026) apply.
From Wigan Pier to Wigan’s Digital Future
Wigan’s story has always been about more than buildings, mills, canals or technology.
It’s about its people.
The people who worked its industries. The people who built its businesses. The people who supported one another. And the people who continue to create new opportunities across the borough today.
The Bargee reminds us of one chapter in that story.
At Digicomm 360, we’re proud to play a small part in the next one.
Digicomm 360 – Connecting Wigan Businesses.
Need better IT, telecoms, connectivity or cybersecurity for your business?
Let’s get connected.
