Awards pay tribute to top Powys businesses
A company serving the aerial drones market, a honey maker and the owners of two caravan parks were amongst the winners at this year’s Powys Business Awards.
The overall category winners were announced at a prestigious awards ceremony on September 28 at The Hafren, Newtown.
Dragon UAV, a Newtown-based company specialising in aerial drones to provide media and data to business, was described by judges as ‘one to watch’ after winning the Start Up Business Award.
Owner Stuart Trigg said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be recognised for the progress the business has made and the effort I have made to promote Mid Wales and local tourism.
"As for the future, I am looking into many different avenues including augmented and virtual reality and agricultural and thermal scanning. This award gives me the motivation to continue to move forwards.”
Sole trader Stuart set up the company in 2016 and provides aerial photography, video, ground photography and video, 360-degree photography and aerial interactive 360s for mainly business clients.
The busy bees at Newtown company Hilltop Honey also savoured the sweet taste of success having been named Small Business of the Year. In the space of seven years, owner Scott Davies has guided the company from a turnover of £23,000 to £4 million and his workforce has been boosted from a one man band to 19. Turnover is expected to more than double to £10 million by 2020.
Scott said: “It’s a great privilege to win this award because there are some awesome companies based in Powys.
“We have recorded 93 per cent growth as business this year, so it’s going in the right direction and long may it continue.”
A family business, which owns two caravan parks on the outskirts of Llanidloes, added another accolade to its growing list when it collected the Growth Award. The Onions family has owned Clywedog Riverside Holiday Home Park since 1996 and expanded in 2016 to develop Red Kite Touring Park, which has been a great success.
The business, which employs six full-time staff and is planning to take on two more, has a turnover of about £1 million. The holiday park has 108 static caravans which attract tourists from the Midlands and South Wales while the touring park has an adults only policy.
Richard Onions has taken over the running of the business from his parents, having worked on the parks since the age of 16. He has been joined by his wife, Emily, a business management graduate.
The pair said: “We are delighted to get local recognition for Red Kite Touring Park which was a long time in the planning process. People from outside the area have realised what we have created but many local people have not.
“We would like to build on our success now that the touring park is open for 10 months of the year.”
Newtown-based business EvaBuild, which Construction Futures Wales has placed in the top two per cent of the most profitable companies of a similar size and turnover in the UK, won the Powys Entrepreneurship Award.
It’s the third Powys Business Award won by EvaBuild.
Managing director Nick Evans said: “This award is great recognition for the hard work of everybody in the team at EvaBuild.
“I am passionate about being based in Powys. Delivering quality with high productivity is inbred in Mid Wales people and that’s something that separates us from competitors nationwide.”
EvaBuild is entering its second major phase of growth, founded upon the ambition, drive and innovation of main directors Mr Evans and Dan Jones. The company increased turnover by a third and increased its workforce by 20 per cent in the last financial year. Future growth projections are set at 20 per cent for each of the next two years, which will take turnover to more than £5 million.
East Radnorshire Day Centre was the winner of this year’s Social Enterprise/Charity Award. The Presteigne-based charity was established in 1995 to provide social care for elderly people.
Welshpool-based recycling specialists Parry & Evans Ltd won the International Trade Award. The family company, which has a turnover of £16 million and employs 62 staff, exports up to 40 per cent of recycled cardboard, paper and plastic to America, China, India, Indonesia and across Europe.
Director Lee Evans said: “It’s brilliant to win this award and I can’t thank our staff enough for all their hard work. We are now one of the biggest waste management recycling companies in Wales and, hopefully, we will grow even more in the next few years as we diversify.”
Newtown company CellPath Ltd, which specialises in the design and manufacture of consumables and equipment used in the diagnosis of cancer, collected the Technology and Innovation Award.
Paul Webber, CellPath’s joint managing director, said: “It’s fabulous to win this award because it’s recognition from our peers. These awards help with recruitment because people want to join a winning team and this is proof that we are doing a good job."
For a full list of winners visit powysbusinessawards.co.uk
