Final shortlist revealed for the BIBAs 2014

The shortlists for 17 prizes up for grabs at the Be Inspired Business Awards, the BIBAs, have been published following a rigorous selection process which culminated in interviews held over the past fortnight.

A total of 34 firms from the Preston area are among the finalists unveiled today – along with 14 firms from South Ribble, 11 from Lancaster and eight from Chorley.

The top award, Business of the Year, has as an eight-strong shortlist including Leyland firm Bleep UK, Chemical Innovations from Bamber Bridge, marketing firm ICG Brandbuilders from Warton, and Kirkham energy brokers Inspired Energy.

Francis Egan, chief executive of Cuadrilla Resources which is sponsoring the awards’ New Business of the Year category, said each of the shortlisted firms would now receive a visit to their business premises from the judges.

He said: “The decision of the BIBAs to send judges ‘on tour’ to visit businesses which have made the finals is an example of the type of innovation which keeps it as Lancashire’s leading business awards.”

Preston-based textiles firm Tetrad is up for the Exporter of the Year award and Manufacturer of the Year, financial services firm Taylor Patterson is in the running for Employer of the Year and Professional Business of the Year, with Steve Pearson, chief executive of Bamber Bridge-based communications experts Remvox, in contention for Entrepreneur of the Year and his firm also up for New Business of the Year.

The BIBAs judges will start visiting finalists from Monday, June 9, when members of judging panel for the E-Business of the Year cat egory visit their shortlisted businesses. The judges will continue to go ‘on tour’ until Tuesday, July 1, when the Business of the Year judging panel visits firms on its shortlist.

A panel made up of former winners of the BIBAs’ lifetime achievement prize, Lancastrian of the Year, will meet this month to pick the winner of the 2014 award, due to be selected by sponsor the Lancashire Community Foundation before the prize-giving ceremony in September.

In 2013, John Lancaster, the founder of Ribble Valley-based conservatory manufacturer, Ultraframe, collected the lifetime achievement award, Lancastrian of the Year.

The awards are organised by the North and Western Lancashire Chamber of Commerce.

These are the finalists in the 2014 Be Inspired Business Awards, a contest which will climax in September with a glittering prize night in Blackpool.

Business of the year:

Bleep UK PLC

Chemical Innovations

I C G Brandbuilders

Inspired Energy

Lailas Fine foods

New Call Telecom

The Stocks Hall Nursing & Care Group

White Moss Horticulture Ltd

Small Business of the year:

Ainscough Training

Services Ltd

CM Oxendale

Connect 2 Cleanrooms Ltd

Direct365

Inteb Sustainablity

Lantei

Peter Jackson the Jeweller

Suresite Group

Service Business of the year:

Assured Cleaning Services Ltd

Businesswise Solutions

Granby Marketing Services

I C G Brandbuilders

Pakawaste Engineering Services Ltd

Preston Bus

Springhill Care

Fairbanks Environmental Ltd

Micro Business of the year:

Colossal Training

Gconnect

Group55

Pennine Events Ltd

Silverwoods Waste Management Ltd

The Little Big Voice

Training Station

WJF Technical Support Ltd

Entrepreneur of the year:

Claire Fryer - The Mosaic Care Group

Jim Elliot - Hangerworld

Joe Govier - Connect 2 Cleanrooms Ltd

Julian Silverwood - Silverwoods Waste Management

Nigel Eastwood - New Call Telecom

Steve Pearson - Remvox Ltd

Laila and Nazir Remtulla - Lailas Fine Foods

Mohammed Patel - Lance Mason

New Business of the year:

All You Knead

Choc Amor

Colossal Training

Contrado Digital Ltd

forward2me Limited

love My Limited

Remvox LTD

The Networking People

Excellence in Customer Service:

Ainscough Training Services Ltd

Chestnut Business Solutions

Hesketh Press

New Call Telecom

NuBlue

Parbold Equestrian Centre

Springhill Care

Via Partnership

Employer of the year:

Connect 2 Cleanrooms Ltd

Fairbanks Environmental Ltd

Inspired Energy

Magma Digital Ltd

Springhill Care

Taylor Patterson Group

The Stocks Hall Nursing & Care Group

True Bearing Chartered

Business Woman of the year:

Claire Fryer - The Mosaic Care Group

Janet Thornton - Inspired

Energy

Jo Varey - Granby Marketing Services

Karen O’Donoghue - Via

Partnership

Michelle Cuffe & Felicity Lacey - Excel Fostering

Nicolla Bishop - Home Angels Chorley

Rose Watkins - Centaur 
Training Services (North West) Ltd

Sarah Southworth - Specialised Cleaning Services (North West) Ltd

Exporter of the year:

Chelsom Limited

Chemical Innovations

Pakawaste Ltd

Scorpion Automotive

Tangerine Holdings

Tetrad

TISS Ltd

Trelleborg Offshore UK Ltd

E Business of the year:

Connect 2 Cleanrooms Ltd

Direct365

Hanger World

Suntana Spray Tan Ltd

Talent Dynamics

The Ink Squid

WebsiteUK Ltd

Creative Business of the year:

Bespoke Internet Ltd

Chelsom Lighting

I C G Brandbuilders

Knight Time Creations

Marmalade Toast

SPS EU Ltd

Stone Create

YouMeSign

Medium Business of the year:

Ascentis

Blackpool Zoo

Granby Marketing Services

Lance Mason

Promenade Hotels Ltd

Scorpion Automotive

SPS EU Ltd

Tangerine Holdings Limited

Construction Business of the year:

Building Careers

Cassidy + Ashton

CM Oxendale

Conlon Construction

Homestead CSL

Jones Melling Ltd

Pinington Ltd

Story Homes

Leisure business of the year:

Blackpool Zoo

Crow Wood Leisure Ltd

Fylde Executive Cars Ltd

Longthorne Gunmakers Ltd

Promenade Hotels Ltd

Starboard Hotels Group

The Wellbeing Farm

Winter Gardens Blackpool

Manufacturer of the year:

Chemical Innovations

Lailas Fine foods

Longthorne Gunmakers Ltd

Scorpion Automotive

SPS EU Ltd

Tangerine Holdings Limited

Tetrad

White Moss Horticulture

Professional Business of the year:

Astute Wealth Management

Cassidy + Ashton

Clayton Recruitment

Jones Melling Ltd

Lance Mason

Magma Digital Ltd

Taylor Patterson Group

True Bearing Chartered