This award celebrates and showcases leadership teams who champion their contribution to the community, prioritise the development and leadership capability of their people, and strive for excellence in products or services to build a business with a strong inclusive culture and strategic direction.

This award looks to recognise businesses from the Ranking that have exhibited exceptional international performance in the last 12 months either through: growing export sales by entering new regions or significantly increasing revenue in existing markets; establishing operations in new territories; and/or taking an interesting, proactive or pragmatic approach to its business activities in the face of the challenges or opportunities presented from the changes in global economic and geo-political landscape.

For a business that: has demonstrated solid growth and strong financial performance; understands its customers; has an engaged workforce with effective leadership; is continually innovating to support future growth. Please also consider entering this award if your business has taken extraordinary steps to overcome challenges or support others over the past 12 months.

Awarded in recognition of the outstanding achievements of a finance team in growing the business; be that growth by strategic acquisition, market-leading innovation, product diversification or exploring new markets. We look to recognise businesses within the Ranking that have made the most of the opportunities presented to them, adapting to achieve their maximum potential within their respective sector and in turn grow market share.

Awarded to a privately-owned business that has grown considerably year-on-year with a compelling story to tell; that has shown stellar growth and can demonstrate it is well set up to continue this growth trajectory over the next financial year, thereby having a hugely positive impact on the Solent community.

This award celebrates and showcases leadership teams who champion their contribution to the community, prioritise the development and leadership capability of their people, and strive for excellence in products or services to build a business with a strong inclusive culture and strategic direction.

“During the Covid-19 pandemic, we took one of our main products – sand – and created a specialised product for the sports market, such as football pitches and golf clubs. This enabled us to diversify and be more recession-proof. Ours is a male-dominated industry, although more women are coming into it, and we have focused on men’s mental health issues. We’ve done a lot of training on this, have mental health first aiders and we partner with a charity focused on the construction industry and men’s mental health. Our leadership team has also gone through mental health training. Another initiative is our employee engagement programme that sees staff putting forward ideas that we aim to deliver on.” Suzanne Wright, Marketing Strategy Director, NMSB

Judges’ comments: “Our winner has shown true diversification through their flexibility during Covid-19, investing in other horticultural industries and markets. With an epidemic on men's mental health at the moment, and with the winner having a high volume of men in their workforce, we felt they humbly took the initiative to understand this problem and strive in the right direction to focus on this issue in their company culture. Away from the business, they support many local charities and communities, such as the IOW and Hampshire Trust.

• Caspian ONE
• NMSB
• Paragon Education & Skills
• Paris Smith
• Spinlock

This award looks to recognise businesses from the Ranking that have exhibited exceptional international performance in the last 12 months either through: growing export sales by entering new regions or significantly increasing revenue in existing markets; establishing operations in new territories; and/or taking an interesting, proactive or pragmatic approach to its business activities in the face of the challenges or opportunities presented from the changes in global economic and geo-political landscape.

“From the outset, the company was set up for international business in safety-critical and other accessories for the sailing market. There are sailors around the world and about 88% of our revenue comes from overseas, with the US our largest market at 25% of revenue. We started in the leisure marine sector and in recent years have been growing in commercial marine, for example, wind farms. We have expanded production at our assembly facility in Cowes to meet demand and our team has grown to 60 people. We were delighted to win a King's Award for Innovation as the award is well regarded around the world.” Caroline Senior, Operations Director, Chris Hill, CEO, Spinlock

Judges’ comments: “This is a business with an impressive global presence, generating the majority of their revenue outside of the UK. They have invested heavily in their production facility to enable continued strong growth in both existing and new markets and they also won the King’s Award for Innovation in 2023.”

• A.J Wells & Sons
• Mar-Key Group
• Pascoe International
• Spinlock
• Vikoma International

For a business that: has demonstrated solid growth and strong financial performance; understands its customers; has an engaged workforce with effective leadership; is continually innovating to support future growth. Please also consider entering this award if your business has taken extraordinary steps to overcome challenges or support others over the past 12 months.

“Our company culture and ethos are based around the family. We are Christians and this plays a big part in what we do, how we treat people and how we run our business. We are now in the second and third generations and feel that if the next generation were to come in and take the business on that's fine but we know everyone will have their own paths to tread. As children, we got involved and helped out, which was part of our growing up. We are innovating by developing clean burning technology to improve the efficiency of and reduce the emissions from our wood-burning stoves. We are also developing new products, like our outdoor kitchens and building cladding. We're always open to people's ideas in the company and always willing to give things a try - that's what gives us a buzz.” Guy Wells, Operations Director, A.J Wells & Son

Judges’ comments: “Founded in 1972 and still proudly family-owned, this business really impressed us with the value it places on its company culture, and the way it transforms lives and delights customers, making it an excellent place to work and leave a legacy beyond any one generation of ownership. They have a focus on innovation in both of the key markets which they serve, and are at the forefront of sustainability developments.”

• AJ Wells & Sons
• Caspian ONE
• Fence Stores
• Spinlock
• Tailor Made Technologies

Awarded in recognition of the outstanding achievements of a finance team in growing the business; be that growth by strategic acquisition, market-leading innovation, product diversification or exploring new markets. We look to recognise businesses within the Ranking that have made the most of the opportunities presented to them, adapting to achieve their maximum potential within their respective sector and in turn grow market share.

“Finance teams are integral to every business and for an SME they are especially important. What makes it so enjoyable to work here is that you aren't doing the same thing every day and each day is different. That helps us to attract and retain people. We try to involve as many people as we can in as many projects as possible to make their work more varied. We use automation and digitalisation for process improvements and have made huge steps forward here. Contrary to a lot of businesses, our finance team is office-based five days a week. This fosters a really good team spirit and stronger relationships. Having an office overlooking Southampton marina also helps.” Jack Callaghan, Head of Finance, boatfolk

Judges’ comments: “The Finance team has made great strides over recent years and now boasts low staff turnover with a good mix of experience and qualification levels. There are clear development opportunities within the team. Investment in technology and embracing automation and digitisation techniques has allowed the team to adapt with the continued growth of the business.’

• Boatfolk
• SMS (Southampton Marine Services)
• HIPPO (Waste Management Services)
• Langmead Herbs
• Saltus Partners

Awarded to a privately-owned business that has grown considerably year-on-year with a compelling story to tell; that has shown stellar growth and can demonstrate it is well set up to continue this growth trajectory over the next financial year, thereby having a hugely positive impact on the Solent community.

“Our 95% growth in the last two years has come from diversifying our business model – previously we focused mainly on events and now we do a lot of commercial work – and driving our international business. Moving to new premises has greatly increased our capacity. We are looking to grow sustainably at around 20% per year. We are also benefiting from private equity fundraising. We’re growing but also maintaining a fun, 'family business' ethos which is us all over, so this award is for our whole team who we’re really proud of.” Hannah Field, Group Brand and Marketing Manager, Jade Carpenter, Chief Commercial Officer, Mar-Key Group

Judges’ comments: “Our chosen winner is well deserving, and their financial growth speaks for itself, with 95% growth over the last two years. They have a 5% market share in the UK, with an ambitious growth plan for international expansions. Following a recent fund raise, and a strong management team, we got a clear sense they will deliver on their growth plans. Fun with a family business ethos, focus on culture and quality.”

• Boatfolk
• Dolphin Motor Homes
• Fence Stores
• Mar-Key Group
• Saltus Partners