Most Promising New Business

• Total word count should be no more than 2000 words excluding questions.
• All entries must be electronic and supporting information is not permitted.
• A maximum of 5 insertions e.g. tables, graphs or photos may be attached at the end of the entry form.
• This online form contains 9 questions. Please ensure that you answer all questions.
• Any entries not adhering to the rules of entry will be eliminated at the next round. Click here to read the Rules of Entry
• All entries for this category from Chamber of Commerce Herefordshire and Worcestershire members will automatically be submitted into the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) awards ( www.chamberawards.co.uk ) with the potential to win not only this category but the overall award for Outstanding Achievement with a £50,000 cash prize. Please tick the box if you do NOT wish your entry to be put forward for the BCC Awards
  Please tick this box if you do not wish to be forwarded to for the British Chambers of Commerce awards.
• As part of the judging process, all entries will be reviewed by Business Link West Midlands. Reviews may take the format of a telephone call or a visit to your premises. As soon as we receive your application your details will be forwarded to Business Link who will contact you direct.

Company Name

Contact Name

Position

Company Address

Postcode

Email Address

Website Address

Telephone Number

Mobile Number

Fax Number

Business Sector

Nature of Business

Main product/service

No. of full time employees

No. of part time employees

Legal status of company

Year trading began

Turnover for 2008

Turnover for 2009

Projected turnover for 2010

Net profit for 2008

Net profit for 2009

Projected net profit for 2010

Please provide a brief description of your business, the products or services it supplies, its customers and the markets that it operates in. You should cover:

• The nature of your business
• Your products and services
• Your customers
• Markets that you operate in

Please outline the overall trend in your sales turnover and profit development together with a brief description of key events that have led to these changes where appropriate. You should cover:

• How your sales turnover has developed
• How your profit has developed
• The key events that have led to any changes. Please provide an explanation

What are the objectives for your business over the next 3 years? You should cover:

• Main objectives for the next 3 years
• How these will be achieved
• Effects that these will have on the overall business

Please summarise why you decided to start your own business and what your vision is for your business? You should cover:

• Rationale for founding your company, e.g. demand for products, gap in the market
• How you see the company developing in terms products, services, turnover etc in the future

What research was undertaken in developing the plans for the business? Please explain the types of research undertaken, the sources and the impact that these had on your decision process. You should cover:

• Methods of research prior to launching the business
• Results that the research uncovered
• Impact of these results on the development of the business

How do you measure business performance against your vision and business objectives? Please supply a summary of key events that may have affected changes in your financial growth. You should cover:

• Methods of measuring business performance against your vision and business objectives
• What you do with the results once measurements have taken place and how they are shared
• Key events that have affected changes in the company’s financial growth

What makes your business stand out from the competition? What is your competitive advantage? You should cover:

• Reasons why you think your business stands out from the competition, e.g. products, services, customer care, price
• What you consider your one competitive advantage to be

** Please give examples of how specific strategies undertaken by your business have driven growth. Outline the strategy and the impact it has had on your business. Choose a maximum of four strategies, covering areas such as marketing, workforce development, customer service and customer loyalty, environmental impact, financial planning and control, supplier relationships and management, operations, IT, and innovations.You should cover:

• Brief details of up to 4 strategies which you feel have driven growth in your business
• Growth achieved and main impact that each strategy has had on the business

** Please provide a short summary of why your business deserves to win this award and what your company would do with the £50,000 prize if you should win the British Chambers of Commerce Award for Outstanding Achievement.You should cover:

• Summary of main reasons why you feel your business stands out from other entrants and deserves to win £50,000
• An explanation of how you would use £50,000 if you won the Award for Outstanding Business Achievement

**Questions will be used to supply additional information as part of the judging of the British Chambers of Commerce Award for Outstanding Business Achievement.

Attachments

Please attach any supporting documents by clicking the browse button below. Please be aware that if you have attached supporting documents it will take slightly longer for the submission to send, depending on how big your documents are.

File 1