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Two Sheffield entrepreneurs recognised at Yorkshire IoD awards

Two of Sheffield’s finest, forward thinking, entrepreneurs, Julia Gash and Andrew Seaton gained recognition at the Yorkshire Institute of Directors Awards, held at the Queens Hotel in Leeds.

Julia was awarded the Entrepreneur of the Year Award in recognition of the success she has achieved since launching an ethically focused accessories label: Talented in 2012.

Julia made the conscious decision to diversify her core business, BIDBI (Bag It Don’t Bin It), which produces tote bags for many of Britain’s blue chip retail brands.

Talented has helped her business to grow by 30% year on year and is now stocked by prestigious retailers worldwide as well as creating five new jobs at BIDBI within the space of a year.

Julia says: “I am absolutely delighted to receive the IOD Entrepreneur of the Year Award. I took a risk by investing lots of time, energy and any spare cash we had into an idea that I believed would increase our stability and give us access to more affluent, international markets.

“I cannot believe how far we have come in such a short time and it’s wonderful to be recognized for my risk taking and hard work”

Young Director of the Year was awarded to Andrew, aged 33. In the last ten years he has founded Resolve IT Solutions – a multi award-winning IT company, become the owner of web design agency Resound Design, and co-founded Twinkl, a hugely successful online educational resource business.

Andrew adds: “It’s a privilege to have been acknowledged by IoD Yorkshire. This achievement represents a lot of hard work and learning over the last 10 years, and I’m extremely proud of the talented team I have grown as a result. I’m looking forward to developing my businesses, as well as the Resolve IT Solutions Apprenticeship Scheme, even more of the next few years.”

Julia adds: “It’s a pleasure to share the podium with Andrew, who I recognize as one of Yorkshire’s brightest business stars. It’s a double win for Sheffield too, which took a third of the awards up for grabs!”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .