awards

Hundreds of successful entrepreneurs were celebrated for their inspirational achievements on Tuesday night at the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, in association with NatWest.

Now in its fourth year, the prestigious Great British Entrepreneur Awards honoured the entrepreneurial talent in the UK, awarding individuals in a number of different categories at the ballrooms of the Lancaster London Hotel.

Hosted by British Broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli and Start-up co-founder Oli Barrett, each category was fiercely contested and demonstrated that entrepreneurship is alive, thriving and blossoming in the UK.

The gala final celebrated inspiring entrepreneurial spirit and promoted the idea that entrepreneurs’ stories are as telling as their balance sheets.

Shaun Pulfrey, founder of the popular Tangle Teezer hairbrush, was named the ‘Great British Entrepreneur of the Year’, joining previous winners Ed Bussey, founder of Quill, Julie Deane from the Cambridge Satchel Company and James Watt from BrewDog. Mr. Pulfrey also won the award for International Trade Entrepreneur of the year.

tangle Tangle Teezer CEO and director, Matt Lumb, accepting the International Trade Entrepreneur of the Year award on behalf of Shaun Pulfery, who was also awarded Great British Entrepreneur of the Year.

Winners for the new categories in this years awards included Tom Ball from Desklodge, who was awarded with ‘Entrepreneurial Co-working Space of the Year’, Jason Trost, founder of Smarkets, won ‘Innovation Entrepreneur of the Year’, Matt Asman from CISCO was named ‘Intrapreneur of the Year’ and ‘Entrepreneurial City of the Year’ was awarded to Edinburgh.

Speaking at the awards, Nick James, founder of Fresh Business Thinking and co-founder of the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, cited the late David Bowie’s hit record ‘Under Pressure’. He said: “It’s probably quite appropriate to kick of this evening with this, as the one thing entrepreneurs need to be able to do is to perform under pressure.

“Every year for the last four years I’ve had the pleasure to stand in a room full of great British entrepreneurs and every year I’ve said something akin to ‘we live in interesting times’, but I think 2016 is going to go down in history.”

nick Great British Entrepreneur Awards co-founder Nick James opening the prestigious gala evening

Observing the memorable events we have experienced this year, including the outcomes of Brexit and the US election, Nick outlined the lessons entrepreneurs can learn from the shockwaves of 2016.

He said: “Dream big, focus on your target market and tell inspirational stories. You never know where that might take you: The White House, into Europe or out of Europe.

“What all of this shouts out to me is opportunity and an opportunity for entrepreneurs, or to steal some words from the late, great Steve Jobs: ‘The crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes.’

“Tonight we’re here to celebrate those entrepreneurs and we’ve got some great people in the room tonight - people who have dreamed big, people who have identified a market and people who have inspired us with their stories.”

Winners:

  • Creative Industries Entrepreneur of the Year – Rosie Davies, London Fashion Agency
  • Eco Entrepreneur of the Year – Laurence Kemball Cook, Pavegen
  • Entrepreneurial City of the Year – Edinburgh
  • Entrepreneurial Co-working Space of the Year – Tom Ball, Desklodge
  • Entrepreneurs’ Champion of the Year – Matt Gubba, Biz Britain
  • Food and Drink Entrepreneur of the Year – Paula Wilkinson, Mum Bakes Cakes
  • Innovation Entrepreneur of the Year – Jason Trost, Smarkets
  • International Trade Entrepreneur of the Year – Shaun Pulfrey, Tangle Teezer
  • Intrapreneur of the Year – Matt Asman, CISCO
  • Micro Business Entrepreneur of the Year – Rachel Dunseath, Myroo SkinCare
  • Retail Entrepreneur of the Year – Jacyn Heavens, Epos Now
  • Service Industries Entrepreneur of the Year – Sebastian Steinhauser, Parcelly
  • Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year – Dr Imrat Sohanpal & Liss Sohanpal, Nom Noms World Food
  • Social Enterprise Entrepreneur of the Year – Ben & Mike Dyer, National Enterprise Challenge
  • Start-Up Entrepreneur of the Year – Dr. David Tuch, Lightpoint Medical Limited
  • Young Entrepreneur of the Year – Simon Crowther, Flood Protection Solutions Ltd & Skyrocket Solutions Ltd
  • Great British Entrepreneur of the Year – Shaun Pulfrey, Tangle Teezer

NatWest Boost Award Winners:

  • Creative Industries Entrepreneur of the Year – Isabelle Ugochukwu, Isabella Queen
  • Eco Entrepreneur of the Year – Reiss Sulustro Pilson & Nigel Van Wassenhoven
  • Entrepreneurial Co-working Space of the Year – Gareth Jones, Welsh ICE
  • Food and Drink Entrepreneur of the Year – City Farm Systems
  • Innovation Entrepreneur of the Year – James McFarlane, PM Connect
  • International Trade Entrepreneur of the Year – Tony Convery, CDE Global
  • Micro Business Entrepreneur of the Year – Julianne Ponan, Creative Nature
  • Retail Entrepreneur of the Year – Paul Sulyok, Green Man Gaming
  • Service Industries Entrepreneur of the Year – Rob Dance, Rock IT
  • Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year – Luke Quilter & Anthony Klokkou, Sleeping Giant Media
  • Social Enterprise Entrepreneur of the Year – Mark Beehan, Chatter Bags
  • Start-Up Entrepreneur of the Year – Sam Gordon & Sophie Eden, Gordon & Eden
  • Young Entrepreneur of the Year – Mark Wright, Climb Online