| News Release |
26 October
2004 |
Biocatalysts
Limited of Nantgarw
is crowned Small Business of the Year for Wales
Biocatalysts Limited
of Nantgarw has won the prestigious
Parcelforce Worldwide Small Business Award for
Wales.
The competition, which is in its 12th year and
is the largest of its kind in the country, attracted
some 3,000 entries from companies across ten UK
regions. The award recognises excellence in UK
small businesses and their contribution to the
UK economy.
Biocatalysts Limited is a private independent
company that manufactures enzymes – natural
chemicals used in the food processing industry.
The company name was registered in 1983 as an
in-house service company within Grand Metropolitan
in West London.
The company moved from London to Pontypridd in
1985 and a somewhat turbulent period followed
until the current chairman William Salisbury purchased
the company in 1995 and appointed Stuart West
as Managing Director.
Since then the company has blossomed with year-on-year
sales growth averaging 20% and gaining the 2003
Queen’s Award for International Trade for
high export sales in 2000-2002.
In June last year Biocatalysts relocated to purpose-built
£2.75 million new premises at Cefn Coed,
Parc Nantgarw to provide it with the platform
required to further grow towards its objective
of increasing sales from just over £2 million
to £10 million by 2010.
Bob Shields, General Manager Parcelforce Worldwide
South Wales, who sat in on the judging session,
said: “This year all of the entries in
Wales were of an extremely high standard. All
the regional finalists were ‘winners’
who showed tremendous examples of well-run companies.
However, there had to be one overall winner and
Biocatalysts Ltd really stood out due to its approach
to both customer and employee satisfaction, which
has helped it to achieve its financial goals.
We are delighted to recognise this achievement
and hope Biocatalysts will continue to grow and
thrive.”
Stuart West, Managing Director said: “Winning
the Parcelforce Small Business Awards 2004 for
Wales is a real boost for myself and my staff.
Everyone was hugely motivated when we previously
won the Queens Award for Industry in 2003 and
it’s an honour this year to have been selected
as the Small Business of the Year for Wales.”
“Being successful and winning awards is addictive,
the more successful you are, the more successful
you want to be. Every year we raise the standards
we want to achieve and every year we achieve most
of them.”
The regional accolade comes with a prize of £6,000
and the chance to win the top prize of £30,000
in the national finals, which will be announced
at BAFTA on November 30. There are also special
awards for outstanding customer service, exporting,
the company with the biggest potential, and for
the best young entrepreneur.
Small Business Minister, Nigel Griffiths MP, said:
“The Parcelforce awards are a great opportunity
to showcase and celebrate the fantastic achievements
of small businesses in creating wealth, prosperity
and boosting economic growth."
"The experience of previous winners shows
that success in these awards can provide a platform
for further growth that enables companies to go
from strength to strength."
Vanessa Leeson, Managing Director of Parcelforce
Worldwide, added: “At Parcelforce we are
proud to provide practical support for small businesses,
and believe these awards are an excellent way
to recognise and encourage those companies for
the contribution they make to the economy. As
well as the financial benefits, the awards offer
a great opportunity for these businesses to enhance
their prestige and raise their profile. Many of
the past regional winners have noted a significant
increase in business in the 12 months following
the awards.”
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