Mum with a £1m business wins top East Midlands award
A DERBY mum who co-founded a £1 million turnover business during lockdown is celebrating her latest success.
Natalie Bamford, who runs personalised gift box service Colleague Box with husband Adam, has been crowned East Midlands Businesswoman of the Year.
The mum-of-two from Spondon said she was surprised to take home the award from East Midlands Chamber’s Enterprising Women Awards, which were held at Nottingham Belfry last week.
She said: “There were some incredible people in the business woman of the year category, people like Helen Wathall MBE, of Wathall’s Funeral Directors, and Smith Partnership business development manager, Claire Twells, and so it came as such a surprise when my name was called.
“The past 18 months have been an absolute whirlwind and I’m incredibly proud of how Colleague Box has grown.
“I have a fantastic team around me including my husband, Adam, and mum, Hannah O’Brien, and we’re excited for the future of Colleague Box.”
The business started in May 2020, at a time when Natalie was on furlough as a technology company’s expedite services assistant.
She came up with the idea of posting the boxes to home-based colleagues in order to “spread a bit of happiness and positivity” while the country was engulfed by “doom and gloom”.
The couple have already grown it into a £1m turnover business as corporations have identified the benefits of being able to send the gift boxes, which can be personalised or themed to feature everything from prosecco and coffee to chocolate and candles. And they can be sent to staff en-masse.
Asked what she liked best about the business after picking up the award,
Natalie said: “We get to spread positivity and happiness, so that initial aim of when we first started Colleague Box is what still excites us today.”
Last month, Natalie opened up about the effects memory loss suffered as a result of her contracting a severe case of meningitis as a child has had on her.
Natalie, 36, says she can’t remember her wedding day or the birth of her two daughters, Lola and Poppy, and uses 35,000 photos on her phone to maintain the memories.
But most importantly she won her fight for life and her incredible story resembles a real inspiration for others. Colleague Box is also in the running, as a company, for start-up of the year at the Derbyshire Live Business Awards, which take place at Derby Arena next Thursday.
While Adam Bamford is shortlisted in the entrepreneur of the year category at the East Midlands Chamber’s Derbyshire Business Awards next month.
Colleague Box is also up for a second award in the annual Chamber awards, for collaboration of the year alongside Derby accountants Vibrant Accountancy and Penguin PR.
We get to spread positivity and happiness, and that still excites us today.
Natalie Bamford