The Hotel Folk was named the winner of the Large Business of the Year award, sponsored by Larking Gowen, at this year's EADT Business Awards at Kesgrave Hall.

The Hotel Folk is a group of six distinctive hotels located across the Suffolk coast and countryside. This includes The Brudenell and The White Lion in Aldeburgh, Thorpeness Golf Club & Hotel, The Crown and Castle in Orford, The Crown in Woodbridge and the Swan Hotel and Spa in Lavenham.

Each hotel offers a unique charm and excellent accommodation and dining set in some of the county’s most outstanding locations.

In 2019, now CEO David Scott led The Hotel Folk through a full rebrand and relaunch. This included a large investment in IT and dynamic marketing systems and a new focus on people – leading to the creation of a bespoke training facility.

The judges had high praise for The Hotel Folk’s new-found customer focus, and called it “an impressive company” with a “dedicated lean towards the environment”.

They said that “innovation is at the forefront of this business” and added that its “charity, employee awareness and training are also great and provide a valued experience”.

They concluded by saying that “the opportunity that covid gave was hugely positive for this company”.

When asked what it means to win the Large Business of the Year award, David Scott, The Hotel Folk’s CEO, said: “Amazing. It’s been a five-year journey of hard work and determination to bring to life something that is about training and developing people to be the best that they can be, and this is for them.”

When asked what his plans for the future are, Mr Scott said: “We want to keep going!

“We’ve got more things to achieve, we’ve got more rooms to refurb, we’ve got better things to achieve and we’ve got even bigger goals of what we want from our people – training is absolutely what we’re all about.”

About the sponsor

Larking Gowen, chartered accountants and business advisors, is a local, independent UK top 40 accountancy firm, operating across Suffolk, Essex and Norfolk.

The firm’s values are centred around service and its commitment to its clients, people and local community. It is committed to the wellbeing and training of its own people, and to making Larking Gowen a great place to work.

The team will work with you as your business grows, helping you make the right decisions along the way. With specialists in audit, tax, VAT, private client, corporate transactions, tourism and leisure, medical, not-for-profit and more, whatever your financial needs, Larking Gowen is committed to helping you reach your goals.

The finalists

Bacton Transport Services

Bacton Transport in Bury St Edmunds is a family-owned company that specialises in pallet haulage and retail logistics, offering customers a range of delivery options across the UK.

The judges were impressed by the culture at Bacton and the ability of management “to roll up their sleeves and muck in”.

They said that “this company and its directors are living and breathing the values”.

Maritime Cargo Processing

Felixstowe-based Maritime Cargo Processing (MCP) is a community system provider that helps ports and airports operate more efficiently through the tracking of goods and its unifying port community system Destin8.

Calling MCP’s sustainable efforts, “admirable”, the judges also commended its increased investment in training, adding that this “will have a huge impact on the business in the future”.

Thomas Ridley

Established in 1808, family-run business Thomas Ridley in Rougham, near Bury St Edmunds, began life as a fine foods shop and now focuses on delivered wholesale to the food service sector.

The judges said that Thomas Ridley is “clearly a company with a small business mentality in the shell of the large corporate company, with excellent customer focus”.

To find out more about all the winners, please click here.

For more on the EADT Business Awards, please visit the website.