WITH an eye on the gradual return to normal business life once the current crisis is over, this year’s SME Northamptonshire Business Awards will include two new categories that celebrate overcoming adversity.
The awards, which were launched online on April 21, will have a slightly different look for this, their fifth year. A new Family Business of the Year award has been introduced to celebrate an institution that has long formed the basis of our business communities. In addition, there will be a Positive Impact Award – designed to showcase any activity, whether in the light of the coronavirus situation or otherwise, that had a positive impact on a business, its customers or the wider community.
In addition, a new public vote category – Business Hero – will be introduced allowing a business, its customers or the general public to highlight where a company has gone that ‘extra mile’ to offer a service either generally as part of its business model, or specifically over the past few weeks and going forward.
SME Northamptonshire Business Awards organiser Damian Cummins said: “This year is going to be a very different take on business success, but we feel it is more important than ever to celebrate the marvellous things businesses do for the local economy. People will be coming out of the other side and this will be the perfect way to raise your profile again.
“We think the new awards will recognise businesses that stepped up when the going got tough, that adapted and innovated in the light of very challenging circumstances.
“The Positive Impact Award and the Business Hero Award could be anything from changing working practices to make sure customers got the vital goods they needed, or maybe a food business setting up delivery services to help the vulnerable, or anything that they or the public feel deserves to be recognised.
“Because of the situation within the food and drink sector, we don’t feel it appropriate to run our Pub of the Year or Restaurant of the Year categories, but hopefully they will be back with a vengeance next year.”
The awards will culminate in a black-tie awards evening on Tuesday 22 September Full details of this year’s awards and how to enter, or nominate a business, are on the official website, visit www.smenorthants.co.uk