Enterprise Nation

As one competition draws to a close (entries for the Home Business Awards closed yesterday ..more on that to come), we hear news of another. It’s the ‘British Small Business Champions’ competition and we’re delighted to see one of our members listed in the finals of the Most Promising New Business category.

And the final fifteen are…

Fifteen businesses have been selected from across the UK to go through to the next round of judging in the Most Promising New Business category of the British Small Business Champions (BSBC) 2008.

This is a new category in the British Small Business Champions; its aim is to highlight the endeavours and achievements of the 500,000 plus people who start their own business each year. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), which organises the British Small Business Champions, sees this as a way of supporting and applauding the efforts of the up-and-coming generation of small businesses.

The short listed businesses are:

• Prospect Brewery, Wigan    
• Brewdog Ltd. Fraserburgh, Aberdeen
• My Secret Kitchen Ltd. Ashton Keynes, Wilts.  (HOORAY!)
• The Farmshed Ltd. Wigan 
• KarenB, Dundee     
• Too True, Ballymena, Co. Antrim
• Photon Energy Ltd. Reading    
• Global Energy Direct Ltd. Wimborne, Dorset
• R.C. Burniston, Boroughbridge, York.   
• One Devonshire Place, Birmingham
• Right Angle Events, Norwich    
• Barbeskew Company Ltd. Brighton
• Wolfestone Translation Ltd. Swansea   
• Whitstone Village Stores, Holsworthy, Devon
• Rent 'A' Bod, Liverpool

(We have a sneaky suspicion that a good number of these businesses will be successfully operating from home)

From these fifteen businesses, six will be chosen to go before the team of BSBC national judges, who will decide which one of them should be selected as The Most Promising New Business 2008. This will be announced at the BSBC national awards evening at Claridges on 21 November.

As well as pride, prestige, publicity and profile raising, the winner will receive £1,000 to spend in a way that will benefit their business, and a splendid trophy. They will also be provided with the artwork showing their title, to use on their business stationery, publicity materials etc.

Good luck to My Secret Kitchen (and all the other finalists too!)

Media enquiries: Gillian Winstone