THE BEST of business in Wellingborough and East Northamptonshire has been celebrated at the Wellingborough & East Northamptonshire Chamber of Commerce Business Awards 2022.
Awards were presented to four businesses across five categories at a breakfast ceremony held at Harrowden Hall, home of Wellingborough Golf Club in Great Harrowden.
Chamber president Pritesh Ganatra pictured above (centre) with the winners said: “We are privileged to recognise the best of business in Wellingborough and East Northants with our annual business awards. It is a wonderful opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate these outstanding businesses and all their hard work.
“A massive thank you to everyone who entered the awards this year. There were some great entries which really displayed the success and excellence of business in the area.”
Winners were judged on their excellence, pioneering approach to business and commitment to furthering the success of the area.
The five categories up for grabs this year were the Services Business of the Year Award, Retail Business of the Year Award, Industry Award, Community Award, and the Excellence Hero Award.
Northamptonshire courier service AJS Express Parcels Ltd collected both the Industry Award and the Services Business of the Year Award. The company’s founder and managing director
Tony Spooner said: “We believe that surviving the last three years alone is an achievement to be celebrated so receiving not just one but two awards on top of that is an honour.
“It demonstrates that our hard work has all been worth it, which means a great deal to us.”
Ailsa’s Aim, a charity dedicated to offering support to families, friends, loved ones and care providers of people in England and Wales who suffer from cancer or those who have experienced premature and problematic childbirths, received the Community Award.
Trustee Niven Whatley said: “We are absolutely delighted that the Chamber has recognised everything we are doing for our community. Knowing that the tireless work of getting the charity up and running has all been worthwhile encourages us to continue making life more bearable and enjoyable for those we support, especially having been through so much ourselves.”
Wine Chateau Ltd, the first UK importer and supplier of Moldovan wines, based on Silver Street in Wellingborough, was named Retail Business of the Year.
“Being a niche small family business, winning this award will help us increase our credibility to customers for the quality service and products we are offering,” said managing director Constantin Paunoiu. “It is a great reward for all of the efforts and challenges our family has passed through to deliver quality service and products for customers aiming to enrich their wine experience with us.”
A new award this year is the Excellence Award, which went to The Chester House Estate for its work supporting customers, other businesses and local community services during the pandemic.
Chester House business manager Jack Pishhorn said: “The value of this award is that it helps show people we are more than just a business. Despite opening the doors during the pandemic in October 2021, we have already welcomed over 200,000 local visitors. We also welcomed a number of businesses which are now flourishing, supported the overall tourism and culture offering in the area and have even hosted large sell out events.”
Richard Osborne, an inspiring entrepreneur who is commonly regarded as an authority in the company formations sector, attended the awards ceremony as the keynote speaker. Listen to his podcast in which he speaks to everyday people who run their own businesses, here.
