There is still time to enter the 2019 Suffolk Business Awards, with a chance to shine the spotlight on your firm’s hard work and achievements.
The big summer celebration is a highlight of the annual calendar, where businesses large and small get together to celebrate success and highlight their achievements.
It is a networking event not to be missed – with inspiring stories often shared on the night.
There will be a category suitable for your firm to enter, whatever sector of business you are in.
Firms are being urged to get their entries in as the deadline approaches for this year’s awards.
The event takes place at Kesgrave Hall, near Ipswich, on July 4 and will feature 11 sought-after categories.
Sponsored by Suffolk Chamber of Commerce and EDF Energy, it brings together the brightest and the best of Suffolk and north Essex’s business talent, rewarding small and large enterprises for their hard work, innovative approach, dedication and commitment to the economy and their local communities.
Last year’s overall winner of the coveted Business of the Year title was Breheny Civil Engineering in Needham Market.
The family-owned firm, founded in 1963, was a first-time entrant – but wowed judges with its entry in the Showcasing Excellence category. Group business development manager Steve Dighton said it meant a lot to the company, which doesn’t have the high public profile of more public-facing Suffolk and north Essex companies, to get recognition.
Despite being responsible for building the entire Bury St Edmunds eastern relief road, from drainage upwards, few on the outside were aware of its achievements.
“It’s more about raising your profile within the county itself and highlighting who you are,” he said, as he encouraged other firms new to the awards to have a go.
“We are very much a business-to-business organisation.
“We don’t work with the public so quite often the kind of work we do with it being pipework or underground, you don’t actually see what we deliver.”
The awards are about letting the community know what your company is about, Mr Dighton added.
“We have been running for 56 years now, so we are well established in terms of time, but if you are not involved in construction or infrastructure, how would you know? We are quite a hidden business,” he said.
The ceremony will be hosted by comedian Tom Allen, and categories include Best Employer, Community Involvement, Customer Care, Environment and Sustainability, Family Business, Food and Farming Excellence, Large Business, SME of the Year, One to Watch and Young Business Person.
The deadline for entries is March 22.
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