Hampshire Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year

With the UK economy in the doldrums, experts agree it will be small businesses that will rev the engine up and revive the country’s fortunes.

Recognising the fundamental part they play is the Small Business of The Year Award which is for the best companies in the south with a workforce of up to 50 employees.

Sponsored by the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, which represents hundreds of small firms around the county, the award will be presented to a dynamic company which demonstrates all round excellence in business.

The judging has focused on financial performance, future objectives and the competitive advantage of the business.

They have also looked at examples of specific strategies which have driven business growth.

Maureen Frost, from Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, who is judging the category, said: “We have been extremely impressed with the number and quality of entries from small businesses this year. Easily the most popular category, we had more than 50 entries to consider. Those that stood out were those that had clearly seen business growth, were embracing innovation, developing new products and had a clear vision and plan.

“A number of entrants, like last year’s winner The Yes Yes Company have already started exporting and developing offices overseas.

“While entrants in this category all employ fewer than 50 people, the clear desire from most to contribute to their local community and involve their staff in other initiatives is great to see.

“All of our shortlisted companies have already stood out from the crowd and we are very much looking forward to meeting our finalists and hearing the rest of their business journeys at the presentation visits.”

THINKING Space Systems Ltd is a manufacturer of bespoke technical furniture for control rooms.

The Romsey-based firm was founded in 2003 and has grown from two people to a factory employing 26 people with a worldwide presence.

Its products include technical furniture and media walls found in air traffic control, security/CCTV, broadcast, traffic and transport industries.

All furniture is created using the inhouse designed and developed Core Assembly System, an aluminium profile build which provides the framework for the furniture.

Thinking Space is also the UK representative for the Kanya aluminium system and Novus MoreSpace office accessories.

ESTABLISHED in 2005, Clearvision has grown to become one of the world's top players in the niche market of software configuration management.

Initially established as a consulting company, Clearvision’s portfolio of software products now includes AgileSCM, CM-Bridge and Migrate2SVN.

Combining these tools with the products JIRA and Confluence, from their American partners Atlassian Software, has contributed towards a 30 per cent annual growth of revenue and employees.

Clearvision clients now include many of the Fortune 500 companies, resulting in export revenue growing to 50 per cent of the 2013 projected turnover of £3 million and the establishment of a USA office in Philadelphia.

AMITY World Business Travel is a successful and innovative Corporate Travel Management Company located strategically at the centre of the Solent area business community.

The firm says it blends bestin- class technology with the buying power of the Advantage Focus Partnership, the UK’s largest Business Travel Consortium, of which they were a founding partner.

They then add real experience and a dash of can-do customer service to provide a winning client experience.

Whether large or small, booking online or with their legendary business travel team, it says each client receives the same high level of personal service delivery.

“WE’RE different.” So says Hampshirebased Brush-Baby, which is unique in recognising that babies, toddlers and young children have very different daily dental-care needs to adults.

Inspired by a little girl who chewed her toothbrush, Brush-Baby’s unique 3-step pathway has an innovative product range to help mums and dads provide the best care for their babies’ dental health from toothless gums, through teething, and on to a full set of baby teeth.

With high rates of tooth decay in under-5s becoming a real issue, a more baby- and child-centred approach was needed, says Dominique Tillen, Brush- Baby’s founder who adds that Brush- Baby has filled this gap.

Supported by dentists, Brush-Baby’s range is now stocked in leading retailers including Boots, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, John Lewis and Mothercare.