Region’s best in running for top accolade

YORKSHIRE business people with a passion for innovation are vying for major honours at Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year awards, it was revealed today.

Eleven entrepreneurs from 10 companies will compete with 32 others from across the North of England. The regional winners will go on to compete for the title, Ernst & Young’s UK Overall Entrepreneur Of The Year, and a chance to represent their country at a global awards ceremony in Monte Carlo next year.

Altogether, 137 finalists have been shortlisted from across the UK.

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The Yorkshire finalists span a wide range of sectors and industries. They include Mike Danby, the chief executive of Advanced Supply Chain, based in Bradford. The logistics firm employs around 600 staff after a period of dramatic growth.

Also on the shortlist is Martin Stead of Chaophraya, based in Leeds. Mr Stead plans to create a £50m turnover business by 2015, which will be built around Britons’ passion for Thai food, as he creates a network of restaurants in every major UK city.

Jacqui Hall, of CNG, based in Harrogate, has built up a company which has become one of the UK’s biggest independent supplier of natural gas for business. The company was founded in 1994 following the deregulation of the gas industry. John Andrew, the driving force behind the development of Direct Golf UK, based in Huddersfield, has also secured a place on the shortlist. Direct Golf UK is on course for more growth after securing a £3.5m funding package.

The specialist retailer, founded and owned by former PGA professional Mr Andrew, will use the finance to increase its store portfolio and build its online business.

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Also in contention is Paul Stoneham, of the Leeds-based hair care brand ghd, which has secured a string of celebrity endorsements.

Retailing has been through a tough time, but Stuart Paver, the managing director of Pavers Shoes, based in York, has seen his business grow. Pavers is a family-owned Yorkshire business which made history last year when it became the first foreign retailer to be allowed to set up wholly owned stores in India. The list includes two figures who frequently feature at award ceremonies – James Lambert, of R&R Ice Cream, based in Northallerton and Graham Honeyman, of Sheffield Forgemasters International.

Mr Lambert has turned R&R into one of the best-known ice cream firms in Europe, while Mr Honeyman has helped Forgemasters to secure lucrative work around the world.

Forgemasters can trace its roots back to the Napoleonic wars, but another entrepreneur on the shortlist, Craig Chalmers, from Leeds, is at the heart of the new-fangled digital sector.

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Mr Chalmers is chief executive of Stickyeyes, a fast-growing online marketing agency. Stickyeyes specialises in search engine optimisation – helping businesses increase their profile online – and social media.

Partnership is often the key to success in business, so it seems fitting that the Yorkshire shortlist features two people who work for the same company. Paul Beasley and Jon Taylor established The Halifax-based Transline Group in 1989. It provides more than 6,000 driving and industrial staff every day through its network of 35 offices across the UK.

Stuart Watson, UK Entrepreneur Of The Year Leader at Ernst & Young, said: “Our finalists are growing their businesses in the face of a flat economy. These entrepreneurial business leaders are identifying opportunities for growth and grabbing them. Innovative thinking gives them the edge over others; it’s in their very nature. In fact they are using current economic conditions to their advantage, to get ahead of the competition.”

According to Mr Watson, successful entrepreneurs have a capacity for “restless innovation” which sets them apart from the competition.

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He added: “They are the kind of people that other people want to work with and for.”

The regional awards event is due to be held in Manchester on June 25, at the Hilton Hotel, in Deansgate.

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