A judging panel made up of leaders from top local businesses and organisations have shortlisted finalists for the Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023, sponsored by Prosperis.

It wasn’t a simple task, with more than 100 entries across 10 categories, which highlighted the strength of the local business community.

Our four judges were Marcus Boardall, chief executive of Reed Boardall, Black Sheep Brewery chief executive Charlene Lyons, Cloud Nine founder and chief executive Martin Rae, and James Farrar, chief operating officer of York and North Yorkshire LEP.

The judging panel met at West Park Hotel in Harrogate in the morning and debated well into the afternoon.

On Friday, January 20, the Stray Ferret will announce the shortlist for each of the 10 categories.

From growing businesses to the up-and-coming stars of the future, the categories are designed to allow businesses to showcase their strengths.

The glittering, black tie awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, March 9 at Pavilions of Harrogate. To book your tickets, click or tap here.

More pictures from the judging day:

There were lots of entries for the judges to get through.

Our judges enjoyed debating about each of the entrants.

Marcus Boardall of Reed Boardall and Martin Rae of Cloud Nine.

James Farrar of the York and North Yorkshire LEP and Charlene Lyons of Black Sheep Brewery.

A panel of four leading business people faces a tough task today as judging takes place in the first ever Stray Ferret Business Awards.

More than 100 entries have been submitted across 10 categories, highlighting the strength of the business community in the Harrogate district.

The four judges are Marcus Boardall, CEO of Reed Boardall, Black Sheep Brewery CEO Charlene Lyons, Cloud Nine founder and CEO Martin Rae, and James Farrar, COO of York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (pictured).

They will meet in central Harrogate to spend today going over all the entries, selecting those most deserving of our 10 awards.

From growing businesses to the up-and-coming stars of the future, the categories are designed to allow businesses to showcase their strengths. Each is sponsored by a leading local business, and the headline sponsor for the awards scheme is Prosperis.

The shortlists will be announced this Friday, January 20.

The spectacular awards ceremony takes place on Thursday, March 9 at Pavilions of Harrogate. To book your tickets, click here.

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New appointments boost Harrogate law firm

Managing partner Stephen Hopwood, centre, with, from left, Stuart Farrar, Helen Ramsden, Kate Develly and David Leuchars.

A Harrogate law firm has begun the year with a series of appointments and promotions.

McCormicks Solicitors has added David Leuchars to its corporate and commercial department, assisting its head, James Towler in business law matters.

Stuart Farrar joins the residential conveyancing team, bringing more than 40 years’ experience, while Kate Develly has been offered a training contract in the crime and fraud department.

She joined McCormicks just over a year ago and has recently become accredited to advise clients at the police station. Her former role has been filled by Helen Ramsden, who has been promoted to criminal law executive.

Managing partner Stephen Hopwood said:

“It is always good to welcome new talent to the team and these appointments and promotions will help to bolster some very busy departments.”

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 are for businesses across all sectors in the Harrogate district.

In these final few days before entries close, we are revealing the last of what our judging panel is looking for when it comes to each of the 10 categories.

The final category up is the Best Digital Marketing Campaign Award, which is sponsored by Next Chapter.

Digital is clearly the way forward. This award recognises the work of businesses that have run incredible campaigns on purely digital campaigns.

Companies looking to enter need to provide information on the digital marketing plan, including its aims and objectives. Also provide statistical information on why the campaign was a success.

Does your business deserve to win the Best Digital Marketing Campaign Award at the Stray Ferret Business Awards? Entries close at 12pm on January 16. It’s simple and quick, so enter today!

Click here or the banner below to enter for the Stray Ferret Business Awards, sponsored by Prosperis.

A major Harrogate district employer has posted a pre-tax loss of £4.1 million after one of its most difficult years ever.

Boroughbridge-based Reed Boardall, which employs 800 staff, grew turnover by 6.2% In the year to March 2022 from £69.8m to £74.1m. But the temperature-controlled food storage and distribution business sustained a £4.1m loss compared with £705,000 profit in the previous year.

The company faced a raft of industry challenges, including rising fuel and energy costs, covid and driver shortages. But it also had to contend with other issues, including a cyber-attack.

Chief executive Marcus Boardall said:

“Our financial performance was adversely affected by Reed Boardall being the victim of a criminal cyber-attack, resulting in our IT systems being out of operation for six days.

“The costs associated with the interruption, loss of revenue and subsequent recovery, were substantial. The situation was exacerbated by bad debt as one of our largest transport customers was placed into administration, although the contract has been taken over by a major retailer.”

Mr Boardall added:

“There’s no question that it has again been a very difficult year for the industry. We have seen the challenges of rising employment costs and inflation forcing up prices for most operators, while coping with continued disruption as a result of reduced staff levels due to covid, along with the problem of driver shortages.

“Looking to the future, the pandemic disruption appears to be settling, and we are starting to bear the fruits of the proactive initiatives we have undertaken to establish our own in-house team of drivers – for example, over the last year, we have trained over 20 new recruits from scratch at our own academy, enabling them to become qualified drivers.”

Mr Boardall said he was “confident that better times are ahead”, adding:

“We have established a strong position in the marketplace and we will continue to prove the success of our single site strategy where we are able to serve all our customers’ needs efficiently.

“I would like to thank our 800-strong team and loyal customers for their continued support as we continue on our growth journey.”

‘Resilient performance’

Based on a 55-acre site just outside Boroughbridge, Reed Boardall has grown to become one of the largest temperature-controlled food distribution businesses in the UK.

With a fleet of 200 vehicles operating 24 hours a day, year-round, it delivers 12,000 pallets of frozen food daily from manufacturers across Britain, Europe and further afield to all the UK’s best-known supermarkets. It also provides blast freezing, picking and packaging services.

Finance director Sarah Roberts said:

“Given the myriad of pressures on the business over the last 12 months, we have once again put in a resilient performance and are pleased to say that we are now on a much more even keel.

“Having completed the multi-million pound expansion of one of our cold stores in spring 2021, we have the largest and most modern facility of its kind in the UK. With a capacity of 168,000 pallets, we have continued to see volumes rise since the year end.

“We have also secured additional business in the new financial year and our ability to adapt to an ever-changing industry is enabling us to attract new customers with very specific requirements while still ensuring their integration into our operations complements our existing customer base.”

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 are for businesses across all sectors in the Harrogate district.

In this final week before entries close, we are revealing the last of what our judging panel is looking for when it comes to each of the 10 categories.

Next up is the Best Employee Development Award, which is sponsored by Jones Myers, Family Law Solicitors.

This award is designed to highlight businesses that develop their employees, giving them the best start for a new career.

Those looking to enter this award need to give details of the business values and culture that lead to the creation of the training programme and highlight employee successes that came as a result.

Do you know a person that deserves to win the Best Employee Development Award at the Stray Ferret Business Awards? Entries close on January 16. It’s simple and quick, so enter today!

Click here or the banner below to enter for the Stray Ferret Business Awards, sponsored by Prosperis.

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 are for businesses across all sectors in the Harrogate district.

In this final week before entries close, we are revealing the last of what our judging panel is looking for when it comes to each of the 10 categories.

Next up is the Unsung Hero Award, which is sponsored by Big Bamboo.

This award is designed to shine a light on those people who are truly the glue of the team.

These people are not only integral to the day to day, but they also bring a personal touch that makes the business that bit brighter.

Those looking to nominate for the Unsung Hero Award need to provide details of the contribution and the impact this person has made as well as details of the person’s background and current position.

Do you know a person that deserves to win the Unsung Hero Award at the Stray Ferret Business Awards? Entries close on January 16. It’s simple and quick, so enter today!

Click here or the banner below to enter for the Stray Ferret Business Awards, sponsored by Prosperis.

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 sponsored by Prosperis is set to celebrate the best of businesses from across the Harrogate district.

With the deadline for entries fast approaching on Monday, January 16 we are revealing the top reasons why businesses simply cannot miss the opportunity to get involved.

The entry process is simple, fast and free, so what are you waiting for? Enter or nominate today!

Shout about your achievements

We know the Harrogate district is home to thousands of incredible small, medium and large businesses.

In the face of the coronavirus pandemic and now a cost of living crisis, local businesses are doing amazing things for their staff and customers.

So why not get recognition for those achievements? Whether your business has seen significant growth, made positive changes for sustainability or inclusivity, we can help you celebrate.

Attract top talent and keep employees motivated

Now more than ever we know just how important it is to attract new employees and keep your existing employees motivated.

Winning or being shortlisted for an award is a great way to set your business apart from the rest. Who doesn’t want to make for an award-winning business?

Not only do we have awards celebrating overall business achievements, we also have awards geared specifically towards celebrating the work of your best staff.

So if you have a Rising Star Under 30 or an Unsung Hero at your business then show them your appreciation and nominate them today.

Exposure with the Stray Ferret’s audience

The Stray Ferret has a huge, local audience. We get more than 200,000 readers every month from across the Harrogate district and beyond.

With ten categories come ten winners and we will profile the great work of all of our winners. So this is a great chance to get your business in front of our readers.

Incredible judging panel

When you are looking to get recognition for your business, it is key that those on the judging panel are the best of the best.

That is why we have handpicked the leaders of top businesses from across the Harrogate district with expertise and experience in a wider variety of sectors.

We have Charlene Lyons, CEO of Black Sheep Brewery in Masham, Marcus Boardall, CEO of Reed Boardall in Boroughbridge, Martin Rae, CEO of Cloud Nine in Harrogate and James Farrar, COO of the York and North Yorkshire LEP in Northallerton.

Network with the best local businesses

The Stray Ferret Business Awards will be a great way to network with the event culminating in a glittering awards dinner on March 9.

With our stellar judging panel, sponsors and shortlisted businesses for each of our ten categories, this is not an event to be missed.

You can see a full list of award categories on the Stray Ferret Business Awards page. Entries close on Monday, January 16.

When you are looking to get recognition for your business, it is key that those on the judging panel are the best of the best.

That’s why we have enlisted the help of leaders from the top business and organisations for the inaugural Stray Ferret Business Awards sponsored by Prosperis, culminating with an awards dinner on March 9, 2023.

There is representation from across the Harrogate district and beyond with Black Sheep Brewery from Masham, Reed Boardall from Boroughbridge, Cloud Nine from Harrogate and the York and North Yorkshire LEP from Northallerton.

We have chosen these judges for their expertise, experience and positions in a wide variety of sectors.

Each judge kindly gives their free time to participate in the process. Any judge with a conflict of interest in a particular category will step away for the duration of those discussions.

We really do have representation from top businesses on board. So it’s time to meet the judges:

Charlene Lyons, CEO of Black Sheep Brewery

Charlene Lyons, an experienced management consultant, became CEO of Black Sheep Brewery in early 2020 after a period as a consultant, helping the business evolve and grow its position as a famous Yorkshire brand.

Marcus Boardall, CEO of Reed Boardall

Marcus Boardall, a qualified Chartered Accountant, joined the family business, Reed Boardall in 2003 where he continues his father’s legacy of supporting and encouraging his colleagues in the pursuit of excellence.

Martin Rae, CEO of Cloud Nine

Martin Rae is the CEO and Founder of Cloud Nine – a Harrogate-based international haircare brand founded by Martin, his brother and stepdad. Cloud Nine was founded in 2008 with a small team but it is now a global brand.

James Farrar, COO of York and North Yorkshire LEP

James works with the York and North Yorksire Local Enterprise Partnership partners and Board to mobilise the team into action. His experience includes leading responses to recession, grown his own professional services business allowing him to have an understanding of business needs and how to encourage economic growth.

Once the deadline for entries has passed, the judges will assess each entry in the same format and without any material that goes against the terms and conditions.

The judges score the entry according to the criteria of each category. The judges will then meet to discuss their scores and make a final decision during a single day of judging. The judging process is final and all decisions are final.

It’s free and easy to enter. We will profile the great work of all the finalists, so we would encourage you to put forward your business today.

You can see a full list of award categories on our Awards page. Entries close January 16.

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

Today is the final Business Breakfast of 2022. It will return in the New Year.

A Harrogate branding agency has appointed a new technical director.

Dan Martin has joined Impression Studio, which is based on Albert Street, after spending two years at creative agency Jaywing.

Mr Martin has 20 years of experience in a range of industries including electronics, HR, education, and a variety of web agencies.

On joining Impression, he said:

“I’m just so excited to have this opportunity. 

“I know I have skills and experience that will benefit Impression but it’s also a chance for me to take the next step in my career and test myself at a new level. 

“I was happy in my previous role and could have stayed there forever, but this was just too good to miss and I’m really looking forward to seeing where we go together.”

Mr Martin will be tasked with overseeing all technical aspects of the work produced. At a strategic level he will be setting the direction of the agency in terms of the technologies used and the approach taken.

Charlie Hartley, managing director of Impression, said:

“Dan brings a wealth of experience delivering complex technical solutions for Enterprise level brands looking to innovate digitally.

“He’ll be implementing Headless CMS & React development solutions to position the agency as one of the leading web development agencies in the north of England.”

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Boroughbridge company appoints new director

Boroughbridge-based firm Reed Boardall has appointed a new director.

Norman Hartley, who has been with the firm for 16 years, has been promoted to transport operations director.

Previously head of transport operations, Norman joined the business in 2006 and has progressed through various positions including operations shift manager and planning manager.

In his new role, Norman will be responsible for reviewing and developing processes to drive efficiency and achieve organisational growth.

Marcus Boardall, chief executive, said: 

“Norman is a confident leader who has constantly demonstrated his ability to manage, motivate and develop teams to deliver operational excellence.

“He’s a fantastic example of one of our many long-serving colleagues who, through hard work and talent, has built a career with us. This latest promotion is well-deserved recognition of his commitment to the company and we believe he will make a valuable contribution in his new role.”

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.

Prosperis, the Knaresborough based financial advisors and employee benefit consultants, are to be the main sponsor of the Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023.

Managing Director of Prosperis, Niall Gunn said:

“We’re delighted to be the main sponsor of the Stray Ferret Business Awards.  As a leading corporate consultancy working across Yorkshire, we know there is so much best practice in the Harrogate district to celebrate and highlight.

“The event promises to be a great occasion – the judging panel is impressive and I’m sure competition for each award will be stiff.”

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 will be held on 9 March 2023.

If your business, team or staff member has an award winning story to tell then now is your time to shine!

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Harrogate law firm McCormicks Solicitors has appointed a new Partner.

David Birks (left) joins as head of the commercial disputes and sports litigation team which offers a wide range of litigation services to both individuals and businesses across the region as well as nationally.

Before becoming a solicitor Mr Birks headed up the North Yorkshire Trading Standards Consumer Advice Team and Special Investigations team, dealing with regulatory matters and specialising in anti-counterfeiting matters.

Senior Partner Peter McCormick OBE said:

“We are delighted to welcome David on board, bringing as he does in-depth expertise in a complex area of law which is a key focus for the practice.”

Mr Birks has experience in sports disputes, including arbitrations, tribunals and FA, Premier League and EFL regulatory matters. His specialisms include insolvency (individual and corporate) and Directors Disqualification Act Proceedings.