The crème de la crème of the county’s business community were revealed at the annual High Sheriff of Cheshire Enterprise Awards.
Around 300 guests gathered at Chester Racecourse to celebrate the awards, in their 12th year, hosted by the high sheriff Sarah Callander Beckett and the vice chancellor of the University of Chester, Prof Tim Wheeler.
Great Barrow based Urban Landscape Design scooped the overall High Sheriff’s Award for Enterprise 2017/18 sponsored by Flintshire based business finance providers LDF.
Judges were said to have been looking for an organisation that had achieved outstanding commercial success and sustainable growth.
Holly Youde, director and designer of the design and build landscape contractor, said: “We were thrilled to be finalists and absolutely honoured to have won this award. It is testimony to the hard work of the whole team who are a huge support and share our vision.
“There are exciting times ahead for Urban and this is a great endorsement both for professional development and the future of the business.”
The company wins a place on the University of Chester’s MBA programme, worth £10,000, for an appropriately qualified member of staff.
Peter Alderson, managing director at LDF, said: “As a business based in the region we were pleased to be able to support the Award for Enterprise for the second year running.
“There is such a lot of talented, innovative businesses in Cheshire and the awards are an excellent way to showcase this while also providing a sound springboard for their future development.”
For the Roberts Bakery Family Award of Excellence Award judges said they were looking for leaders of outstanding entrepreneurial families and the achievements of specific family businesses in Cheshire, Warrington and Halton.
The category saw an especially high calibre of entrant and the award was split between two ‘great’ businesses, Car Transplants UK in Winsford and Overwater Marina at Nantwich, who both share the £3,000 in prize money.
John A Schofield, managing director of Car Transplants, a vehicle salvage management company, said: “I am immensely proud of what Car Transplants has achieved over the last 43 years. Receiving such a prestigious award is an accolade to the dedication and hard work of both my family and workforce.”
Janet Maughan, owner of Overwater Marina, said the company was ‘delighted to be a winner’ and commented: “Taking part in such a prestigious awards is always an excellent opportunity to take a good look at what you do as a business and to then win an award is the absolute icing on the cake, not just for us as a family but for every member of our team who work so hard to make the marina a very special place to work and visit.”
Highly commended in the same category was Chester-based commercial catering distributor C&C Catering Equipment.
The new Micro Enterprise Award category was won by Tarporley-based online butchers Chestnut Meats who will receive £2,000 worth of prize money.
Marnie Dobson, managing director, said: “We are over the moon to receive this prestigious award. We would like to thank our customers for their support, staff for all their hard work and suppliers for their wonderful products.
“Chestnut Meats is proud to be named Micro Enterprise Winner 2017-18 and looks forward to growing the business and our team further in the year ahead.”
The Cheshire Business Exporter of the Year, sponsored by Click Consult and the West Cheshire and North Wales Chamber of Commerce, went to Frodsham-based company Heat Trace.
Dan Berrisford, managing director, said it was ‘brilliant’ for the company to win the award and added: “It will make our employees rightfully proud and give us a great excuse to celebrate as a team as well as being an achievement that we can use to promote the company to current and future customers and other external stakeholders.
Heat Trace will receive a bespoke package of support to help research and develop overseas trade in a new market.
Prof Phil Harris, chairman of the organising committee of the awards, said: “The High Sheriff of Cheshire Enterprise Awards are now in their 12th year and celebrate the wonderful businesses in the Cheshire/Warrington/Halton Economy.”
The high sheriff added: “One of the highlights of my year as high sheriff has been promoting the wonderful businesses across the county and in particular introducing the new micro business award.
“Celebrating the wealth of opportunity and variety of enterprises from the more rural south to the enterprise and science corridors of the north of the county is so important.”
The high sheriff also paid tribute to the ‘generosity’ of the Cheshire business community who on the night raised £2,655 for Cheshire Community Foundation.
Guest speaker during the evening was Dr Sandeep Ranote who spoke about her work as a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist leading young people’s eating disorder services and as director of clinical networks at the North West Boroughs NHS Foundation Trust.
