THEY’RE THE BEST IN BUSINESS:
STOCKPORT Business Awards 2017 took place at Stockport town hall on Thursday and 400 people turned out to celebrate the achievements of the town’s best businesses.
The awards were set up by Clarke Nicklin Chartered Accountants back in 2012 and have grown year on year.
Twelve awards were given out in total including two new ones for this year; Best Creative Agency which went to Platform 81 and Best Food Business which went to Angkor Soul, a Cambodian restaurant based in Marple, which is one of only two Cambodian restaurants in the UK.
The awards are supported by headline sponsors Gorvins Solicitors and Orbit Developments.
This year’s host was Jenny Powell who did a fantastic job of keeping the excited crowd quiet for those all-important moments.
The NSPCC were the chosen charity and £4,600 was raised for their “Speak out, Stay safe” service which visits primary school children in Stockport to educate them on abuse.
Andrew Baggott, Managing Partner of Clarke Nicklin chartered accountants, said; “This year’s awards ceremony was fantastic, there was a real buzz in the room and I am so pleased to see how the awards have grown since we started them. Congratulations to all of the well-deserving winners!”
The full list of winners and runners up is:
●●BUSINESS of the Year £5m+ – sponsored by Clarke Nicklin chartered accountants - On The Beach.
Judges said: “On the Beach’s figures are impressive and the business seems to be moving in the right direction. Well done!”
Highly commended: Active Flooring Solutions and IMS (Euro).
●●BUSINESS of the Year £1-5m – sponsored by Gorvins Solicitors Woodbank Office Solutions.
Judges said: “Woodbank were a stand out winner, showing good growth and profitability.”
Highly commended: Leads 2 Trade and S I Sealy.
●●BUSINESS of the Year up to £1m – sponsored by Orbit Developments Platform 81.
Judges said: “This was a fantastic submission, Platform 81 is a great business and we are expecting them to be in the higher turnover category next year!”
Highly commended: ECS Consultants and Hatters.
●●BUSINESS Person of the Year – sponsored by Leemic - Nicola Ryan, Rowlinson Knitwear.
Judges said: “Nicola was a standout winner, having revolutionised the way Rowlinson look after their employees.”
Highly commended: Cark Hampson, Allied Bakeries and James Aktinson, P& P Mailing.
●●MOST Promising Young Business – sponsored by Nat-West AAI Global.
Judges said “AAI have a great growth story with solid financials and they’ve made a really good start to the business. Best of luck for the years to come!”
Highly commended: Agile Automations and Film My Match.
●●BEST Food and Drink Business – sponsored by Michelle Hay Training - Angkor Soul
“Angkor Soul offer a unique dining experience in the heart of Marple Bridge and judges were really impressed with the profitability of the business.”
Highly commended: Rhode Island Coffee and Where The Light Gets In.
●●BEST Creative Agency – sponsored by Marketing Stockport Platform 81.
Judges said: “This was a tough category to judge with some strong entrants, but Platform 81s visions for the future made them stand out! What a fantastic business!”
Highly commended: Bellyflop TV and Trust.
●●EMPLOYER of the Year Award – sponsored by SMBC and Stockport Economic Alliance - SAS Daniels.
Judges said: “This was a really hard category to judge but SAS Daniels clearly have their employees at the heart of everything they do and this is reflection in many ways including fantastic employee happiness ratings!”
Highly commended: IMS (Euro) and Julian Wadden.
●●THE Innovation Award – sponsored by MAN Diesel and Turbo UK Manchester Fertility Clinic.
Judges said: “We were impressed with this application and the fact that the business invests in innovation in every area of its operations. Really well deserved!”
Highly commended: Glossop Cartons and Life Leisure, acti-life.
●●BEST International Business – sponsored by Clarke Nicklin Financial Planning - APEM.
Judges said: “We were really impressed with APEM’s international growth which has gone up significantly from the year before.”
Highly commended: Laser Quantum and Nexperia.
●●EXCELLENCE in CSR – sponsored by CDL Together.
Judges said: “This is a well-deserved award for Together who are involved in a huge amount of CSR activity in the local area and are a fantastic example of how to do it right!”
Highly commended: SAS Daniels and Stockport Homes.
●●BEST Not for Profit Organisation – sponsored by Ashcroft Creative Millie’s Trust.
Judges were so impressed with what Millie’s Trust have achieved over the last few years and wish them all the luck for the future.
Highly commended: Pure Insight and St Anns Hospice.