Finalists shortlisted for regional 'Entrepreneur of the Year'

The cream of North East entrepreneurs have been shortlisted to compete for the title of Entrepreneur of the Year.

Ten entrepreneurs from nine companies in the region have been named as finalists for the regional Ernst & Young awards.

They will join 33 other companies from across the North of England to compete for the regional award with the winner going on to vie for the title of ‘Ernst & Young UK Overall Entrepreneur of the Year.’

The UK winner will then win the change to represent the country at a global awards ceremony in Monte Carlo next year.

Sponsored in the UK by Credit Suisse, Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses.

The nine North East finalists are, Chris Quickfall from eQuality Learning in Hebburn, Kate Culverhouse from Groundwork North East in Bishop Auckland and Paul Young of Kitwave in North Shields.

Also shortlisted were, Stephen Parking from Mayborn Group in Cramlington, Lee Hartley of Moneygate Group in Boldon, Nagma Ebanks-Beni and Nima Beni from Prima Cheese in Seaham, Quantum Pharmaceutical’s Andy Scaife from Burnopfield, Graime Oram of the Five Lamps Organisation based in Thornaby and Geoffrey Thompson from Utilitywise in South Shields.

The winner will be announced at a regional awards event held in Manchester on June 25th 2013, at the Hilton Hotel, Deansgate.

The 2013 North of England judging panel will be chaired by Anthony Preston, Founder of Pets at Home Limited.

He said: “I’m delighted to chair the North judging panel and play my part in recognising the great entrepreneurial businesses in our region..

“These business leaders represent job and wealth creation, which are important factors in tough markets.

“My fellow judges and I look forward to meeting them and hearing their entrepreneurial stories and diverse approaches to growth.”

North East winners from 2012 included: Wayne Edy of inov-8; Andrew Hodgson of Soil Machine Dynamics; Margaret Elliott OBE of Sunderland Home Care Associates (2020); and Bill Scott of Wilton Group.

Simon Whiteside, North East Entrepreneur Of The Year Leader at Ernst & Young, said: “Our finalists are growing their businesses in the face of a flat economy.

“These entrepreneurial business leaders are identifying opportunities for growth and grabbing them. Innovative thinking gives them the edge over others; it’s in their very nature.

“In fact they are using current economic conditions to their advantage, to get ahead of the competition.

“Be it by investing in international markets – exports to China and India are growing strongly – or delving deeper into understanding their customers.

“Finalists in this year’s programme show deep understanding of their customer’s needs and are developing new products or services to match them exactly.

“Entrepreneurs aren’t waiting for traditional markets to recover, they are ramping up activities and capitalising on pockets of potential.”