Dorset Business Awards announces finalists

As a proud sponsor of the ‘entrepreneur of the year’ category at the Dorset Business awards Bournemouth University can now announce the three finalists.

BU is one of the sponsors of the Dorset Business Awards 2011, which recognises the achievements of Dorset’s most vibrant and outstanding entrepreneurial companies.

The awards have just celebrated on Monday evening the Meet the Finalists event sponsored by Hoburne Holiday Parks, which saw 27 companies invited to meet their sponsor and mingle with other finalists.

Now the final three companies have been shortlisted for each award, and some of the most talented finalists, (if we don’t say so ourselves), are alumni of BU.

Three of the directors of Adido LTD graduated from BU, and formed a company which specialises in bettering online branding and teaching digital skills to clients such as the NHS, Department of Health and Oxford University.

Other BU finalists include Jimmy’s Iced Coffee, a brother and sister duo that began with a mission to bring good iced coffee to the UK, being appalled after returning from Australia and not being able to slurp anything remotely comparable.

Jim Cregan, one half of the founding duo said, “We are obviously super stoked that we are shortlisted, it’s a big and exciting thing, we are pretty new, meet the finalists evening was great, we even tried to pitch to other finalists! We have never done anything like this before and it will be a really exciting, rad and awesome experience if we win!”

Volsen LTD is the third finalist, a professional construction company, specialising in being one of the leading contractors for noted industry bodies such as Sika Trocal and Sika Sarnafil.

The winner will be announced at the Gala Dinner on the 24th of November, of which Deputy Vice Chancellor, David Willey will present the winner with their award.

Now in its 17th year, the Dorset Business Awards are organised by Dorset Business (the Chamber of Commerce & Industry for Dorset) and backed by a number of sponsors including BU, KPMG, Morgan Sindall Investments, NatWest Bank, Nuffield Health Bournemouth Hospital,chartered accountants Princecroft Willis, Liz Lean Public Relations, refreshed media, the Bournemouth Daily Echo and radio station Wave 105.

• Dorset Business Awards 2011