The UK Startups Awards 2014 winners were announced at a gala reception in Kensignton Gardens in London. Organised by Startups.co.uk, the #StartupsAwards was aimed at young companies across 14 categories that scaled to revenue of £1m just one year after launch.
For Big Red Cloud this is our first year as sponsor and judge and it has been a most rewarding experience. Any business owner reading this blog post will immediately relate to the passion and enthusiasm that start ups must engender in their early stages and indeed beyond. Start ups by their very nature are fragile vessels that must navigate though very choppy waters and they must extract every ounce of strength that they can from just being positive.
So, it was a very exciting place to be – in the midst of all these high energy start ups. Bear in mind that there was a large number of entries and despite the best will in the world, many did not make it past the judging process. Interestingly, Big Red Cloud sponsored a similar start up awards competition in Ireland, ‘The Bank of Ireland 2014 Startup Awards’, and it too threw up the one obvious differentiator between those that made it to the final stages and those that did not. ‘The better pitch doesn’t necessarily mean a better product or service but it leaves a better impression which leaves you better positioned for more in-depth follow ups. Again, part of the learning process or practice makes perfect.’
To all the finalists, it’s a great learning experience and to the winners, drive on from here. Your business has received well deserved recognition. Use that to drive awareness and build new communities that are waiting to hear from you. At Big Red Cloud we can’t wait to tell the world about you.
You might also take the opportunity to tell the world about our great news – We have been shortlisted for the Sponsor for a Day competition and your vote could make all the difference. Click here……
The Startups Awards 2014 winners are:
Crowdfunded Business of the Year: LOVESPACE
Finalists: Seedrs, F-Board
Franchisee of the Year: Vance Parsons, Driver Hire (Hereford & Worcester)
Finalists: Julian Westwood; Diamond Logistics (Birmingham), Nick Blake; Jasper’s (Warrington)
Home-based Business of the Year: Meredith Bespoke
Finalists: Lime Lace, Towers Design
Independent Shop of the Year: Seriously Sofas
Finalists: Cocoba, The iOutlet
Innovative Business of the Year: Cambridge Intelligence
Finalists: 4eco, Captive Media
Mumpreneur of the Year: Tamara Arbib, Rebel Kitchen
Finalists: Cordelia Meacher, Fieldhouse Associates; Samantha King, Lime Lace
Product Business of the Year: Eyespace (sponsored by All Response Media)
Finalists: Gousto, Lost My Name
Restaurant of the Year: The Yorkshire Meatball Company
Finalists: Sugar Supper Club, Sosban & The Old Butchers
Service Business of the Year: CommuterClub (sponsored by Big Red Cloud)
Finalists: BIZZBY, Darmouth Partners
Tech Business of the Year: Centtrip Card (sponsored by .uk)
Finalists: Flubit, Powerlinks Media
Venture Funded Business of the Year: Currency Cloud (sponsored by haysmacintyre)
Finalists: Gousto, Pact Coffee
Women in Business Award: Jodi Huggett, 4eco
Finalists: Julie and Jayne Abel, Eyespace; Gemma Ferris, Feritech
Young Entrepreneur of the Year: James Brown, Beer52 (sponsored by Made Simple Group)
Finalists: e-finity Leads, GPS Locums
People’s Champion Award: Lend Me Your Literacy
Simply Business Startups Business of the Year: Beer52
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If you’re a start up, why not take a trial of Big Red Cloud accounting software and see how we can make running your accounts easier.
