Nine make shortlist for prestigious competition (From Salisbury Journal)

Nine make shortlist for prestigious competition

9:38am Thursday 8th December 2011 in Business By Katharine Lawley

TODAY, we announce the names of the firms that have been shortlisted in our Local Business Accelerators (LBAs) competition.

The judges had a tough job whittling down the entries, but they’ve done it.

Nine entrants now go forward to the final judging, with the three winners being announced on January 12.

Local Business Accelerators (LBA), launched in October and backed by, the prime minister, David Cameron, is an initiative organised by the Newspaper Society in which 500 newspapers, including the Salisbury Journal, are offering a total of £15million worth of free advertising.

The winners will also receive mentoring from three entrepreneurs.

One lucky business, picked from the hundreds chosen as regional winners, will get individual mentoring sessions from Dragons’ Den star Deborah Meaden, who is the LBA national ambassador. The judges comprise our mentors, James Grazebrook, Paul Horsley and Lara Morgan, Journal publisher Bill Browne and business editor Katharine Lawley.

Here we give brief details of the shortlisted businesses.

Wessex Drainage Solutions

WESSEX Drainage Solutions has grown rapidly since it was founded in Salisbury in 2009.

Director Ian Porter says: “Starting with four employees, we now employ 18 full-time.

“We have gained many major contracts, won the South Wilts New Business of the Year award and six other awards.

“Our greatest satisfaction has been successfully solving problems that major national companies have been unable or unwilling to tackle.

“Our advertising budget is limited and we do not advertise as extensively as we would like.

“Local papers are ideal for us because that is the area that we serve.

“We are experts in our own field, but we are aware that this does not include the development of a larger business and that we have expanded rapidly without the commercial and financial expertise that larger organisations enjoy.”

Fullerton and Hamblin

INTERIOR decorating and soft furnishing company Fullerton and Hamblin has enjoyed great success in its short life.

Based in Hindon and founded last year, it won a contract to refurbish the Athenaeum Club in London’s Pall Mall and has become a listed preferred supplier to the Pall Mall Clubs.

Director Rene Fullerton says: “We have a strong loyal client base and our reputation for our high quality work is growing and spreading. We are actively seeking additional staff from our local area to keep up with our current demands. We would definitely benefit from expert advice on how to increase our client base and, in turn, increase our workforce to support our community. We believe there is always something to learn and opportunities to search out.”

Vivien Sheriff

THIS year has been unforgettable for milliner Vivien Sheriff, thanks to April’s royal wedding.

Her team in Downton worked with bride Kate Middleton’s family and other guests to fulfil commissions for bespoke hats and headpieces.

Orders are up by a third, a trade visit to the USA proved successful and investment is being made in new premises in Salisbury.

Ms Sheriff says: “With business well placed to grow on a local level and trade business increasingly growing into export markets, turnover is forecast to increase by 15 per cent over the next year and new jobs are set to be created.

“Mentoring support through a financial and export expert will help steer the company through a crucial growth period.

“Free advertising space would promote awareness of the business and advertise the new outlet, strengthening the brand’s unique position to attract new customers and revenue into Salisbury from the wider local area, well beyond the campaign period.

Menace Sports

BUILDING a brand from scratch is teacher Henry Lamb’s greatest achievement since founding Menace Sports. The business aims to get children involved in sport by making it fun.

Mr Lamb has already run courses at two schools in Salisbury and is ready to expand the business. “I believe I have a very exciting and attractive brand/product and now need to make the next step by marketing my brand out to the masses,” he said.

“I am teaching as well as running my business so I struggle to find the time to market my product. I would therefore benefit hugely from free advertising space in my local paper.”

Planet Tribute

LOUISE Kingshott was thrilled when her Abba Tribute performed to 10,000 people in Italy early in her business’s history.

Ms Kingshott founded Planet Tribute in 2009 in Woodfalls.

She said: I am a driven and motivated entrepreneur who loves finding amazing performers and helping them with their publicity and marketing to help establish their careers in the entertainment industry. Totally different to the traditional entertainment agency or management agency, Planet Tribute combines skills in web design, photography, videography and marketing with knowledge of the music industry to market a hand-picked number of top quality acts.”

Southern Cleaning

FREE advertising in the Salisbury Journal and business mentoring would greatly benefit Southern Cleaning Specialists, says its boss and founder Matthew Wilds.

“Advertising is quite expensive, especially for a small business like us and, as we can’t afford it, it is very difficult to come up with other ideas to get our name out there in the local area,” said Mr Wilds, who started the business last year in Amesbury and employs eight people.

“Mentoring will help give us ideas on what we can do about it.”

SureGrip UK of Amesbury

MAKING the working environment and the home safer is the mission of SureGrip UK of Amesbury.

The company has already gained accreditation with two health and safety schemes.

Director Alex Plummer says SureGrip can treat any surface to make it non-slip, “from baths to boats and from shops to saunas, reducing the accident rate, litigation costs and personal suffering”.

“We need expert advice in many areas - the main one is how to market SureGrip’s products,” he said.

“Free advertising would dramatically improve awareness of our company at a time when funds are limited and, hopefully, lead to more clients.

“We believe that with the right advertising, SureGrip will soon be a widely used company, working to make the UK a safer place for all.”

Hills Metrology of Amesbury

ACHIEVING quality standards has started to open doors for Hills Metrology of Amesbury, says owner Kevin Hills, pictured.

Mr Hills, who operates from a unit at Boscombe Down Business Park, Amesbury, inspects components, measuring them to check their size and that each part’s position conforms to the product’s specification.

Hesaid: “Achieving our quality standards ISO 9001 and AS9100, has started to open doors into the aerospace industry. I believe Hills Metrology will succeed over the next year due to the excellent relationships we have formed with our existing customers and the repeat work they give us.

“However, we still need new local customers to continue our success and help us expand into new areas.

“Because we are a small, family run business we don’t currently have the expertise or investment capital to create a really effective marketing strategy.”

lapVent

BEFORE being brought to market, lapVent won the Millennium Product Award.

Daniel and Andy Rhind-Tutt, who run their lapVent company in Salisbury, say thousands of houses have a problem with condensation in the roof space, with water running down the roofing felt and causing damp patches on ceilings.

The lapVent device fits inside the roof, avoiding unsightly vents on the outside and providing the ventilation needed to avoid condensation and costly repairs.

Daniel Rhind-Tutt said: “LapVent is the only patented, internally fitted ventilation product that complies with British standards and can be fitted in minutes.

“Advertising will raise awareness and mentoring will help us reach key targets, thus helping us to grow as an enterprise, take on staff and contribute to our economy.”