Independent judges impressed by the quality of Solent Deals Awards entries
Five independent judges assessed the entries for the 2022 Solent Deals Awards before the finalists were announced. The winners will be unveiled at an awards dinner on 24 March at the Hilton at the Ageas Bowl. Here, the independent judges – all from major Solent businesses – reveal what they look for in a winning entry.
What was the standard of entries like this year?
Chris Garrett, a Director at pump rental company Workdry International (Sellwood), thought the “impressive selection of nominations across all categories” reflected the strength of the Solent business community. “This creates its own challenges for us as independent judges but that leads to a healthy debate around the nominations and is a challenge that we all readily accept,” he said.
Greg Davies, Managing Director of retailer Smith Bradbeer & Co, was “surprised by the value, and of the high volume of deals, that have been secured in the Solent area.”
The high standard of entries made judging slightly easier for Joe Jeffers, Chief Financial Officer at IT and communications specialists Tailor Made Technologies, while Edwin Bessant, CEO of Ceuta Group, said the number of impressive entries made the task more challenging.
Alison Trant, Director at Romsey-based business finance consultancy FiftySeven Finance, considered the “very good standard of entries” was evidence of the buoyant levels of activity by the professionals and businesses operating in the region, which was good to hear about "against the barrage of bad news in the press".
Trant said:
"We have seen companies be ambitious, grow, and new management teams given the opportunity to take companies to the next stage.”
What winning qualities were you looking for?
Jeffers’ focus was predominantly on people. “Where there is a great deal and that person or team have shown creativity and persistence to get the absolute best outcome for all parties and create a win:win situation,” he said.
Locally-based deals were on the radar for Davies and also Garrett, who said:
“Depending on the nomination, various factors were considered – from the input of the local advisory community, the contribution of certain individuals, the complexity of the transaction and the impact of the transaction on the Solent region.”
Bessant added: “What the team, business or individual was doing differently from their competitors, the quality in the detail of service, what additional values were being delivered, looking for consistency across the business or quality of professionalism from the individual.”
The ability to handle complex deals caught Trant’s eye: I was looking for complexity either (in some cases both) the technicality of the transaction itself or in the logistics of carrying it out, such as tight timescales or cross border - and everyone got credit for adapting to the new virtual and remote world we now operate in.”
Why is the region important to your company?
All five independent judges are keen champions of the Solent business community. Based in Chandlers Ford, Selwood has operated in the region for over 75 years. “While we trade across the UK and overseas, the Solent will always be home,” said Garrett.
Bradbeers has been “part of the Solent furniture” since 1837. “I think prospects are excellent, particularly now, as Solent has been awarded free port status, including both Portsmouth and Southampton."
Most of Tailor Made’s customers are within a 40-mile radius of its head office in Whiteley. “We believe we have the skills and product set to really help our customers who will then have better-performing businesses (IT-wise) coupled with a lower risk of a cyber attack – or at least mitigate those risks as best we can,” said Jeffers.
Ceuta is an international business with its roots firmly planted in Bournemouth. Bessant said: “It is extremely important to have an affluent business region with purposeful, professional and talented people and strong professional services support.”
For Trant, FiftySeven Finance’s success relies on its contacts and network in the South. “There’s a talented, friendly and hard-working professional community we are proud to have been a part of for over 20 years. We take no greater pleasure than recognising a need and being able to introduce SME businesses to the depth of expertise in the region,” she said.
