August 12th, 2008
Brighton and Hove Business Awards (BAHBAs) Shortlist Announced
Brighton has talent – as the shortlist for this year’s Brighton and Hove Business Awards certainly demonstrates.
Some of the Brighton’s biggest and best – and youngest and newest – make the list of 33 finalists.
The list reflects the commercial energy of the Brighton business scene. The city was recently named the nation’s most entrepreneurial in the UK with over 50 percent stating they have thought about starting their own business and a higher proportion (12%) than average (9.3%) of entrepreneurs already self employed and on the road to being their own bosses.
For the fifth consecutive year, the BAHBAs have attracted an increasing number of entries from all sectors of the city. The creative industries, which make up 10.7% of the city workforce, are well represented this year with entries from jewellers, animators, dancers and digital designers.
Dany Louise, Creative Industries Manager at Brighton & Hove City Council, said: “We have been really impressed by the number and quality of the Creative Industries applications this year, with both established creative companies entering, and some very quirky and interesting new young enterprises. We wish them all great success!”
Now in their fifth year, the BAHBAs are firmly established as the city’s premier business awards scheme. Designed to raise awareness and to celebrate the diversity and uniqueness of Brighton and Hove, the BAHBAs acknowledge and celebrate those companies, organisations and individuals who are helping to build the Brighton brand.
Tony Mernagh, Executive Director of the Brighton & Hove Economic Partnership, took the Chair to lead the judges in their decisions this year.
He said: “Deciding between a stunning array of applicants did not make the judges job easy and one particular category was revisited four times to choose the winner.
“As a consequence we have arrived at an exciting shortlist that captures all that is great about the rich variety of businesses that we have in the city.”
The scheme is supported by some of the city’s leading companies including local rags to riches success story, iCrossing, Legal & General, Brighton and Hove City Teaching Primary Care Trust, MDHub, Hilton Brighton Metropole, First Capital Connect, NixonMcInnes, Brighton & Hove City Council, The Argus, University of Brighton and award organisers, Midnight Communications
The sponsors were this year joined for the first time by Royal Mail and Allied Irish Bank.
Mike Wilkins, Senior Manager of Corporate Business at Allied Irish, helped to judge the Award for the Best Place to Work and commented: “These awards recognise those businesses who understand that the key to creating and maintaining a thriving work force and successful business is investing in staff and the environment in which they operate.”
New for 2008 is the Award for Equality and Diversity in the Workplace which celebrates the efforts of businesses in Brighton & Hove to realise the potential of everyone in the local labour market by applying good equality and diversity practices in the workplace. It is sponsored by The Brighton & Hove LEADER Group, which includes Brighton & Hove City Council, DMH Stallard, EOPPS, Sussex Hospitals, Sussex University, Brighton University and Quantum Recruitment.
Brighton has long enjoyed its reputation as the digital hub of the UK, being known the world over as Silicon Beach. And this year NixonMcInnes has sponsored the search for the most Awesome use of Digital Media - to identify those individuals, companies and organisations which do most to raise the bar and enhance Brighton’s reputation for delivering digital goodness on a global scale.
The winners will be announced at the awards dinner which takes place on Friday 26 September in the Oxford Room of the Hilton Brighton Metropole before an audience of around 500 city representatives.
