The search is on for the best in business

The 2015 East Anglian Daily Times Business Awards are open for entries.

The awards, now in their 18th year, aim to recognise the best in entrepreneurial endeavour and business practice across the EADT’s circulation area.

For the fourth year running the joint main sponsors of the awards are EDF Energy and Suffolk Chamber of Commerce, which are working in partnership to ensure that local firms are able to derive maximum benefit from the planned Sizewell C nuclear power station development.

Their support includes the overall Business of the Year title which, as in previous years, will be awarded to the organisation deemed “best of the best” out of all the category winners.

The awards have attracted hundreds of entries in recent year and the black-tie gala presentation evening has become an important fixture in the region’s business calendar, with this year’s ceremony taking place at Trinity Park, Ipswich, on Thursday, July 9.

Former BBC Radio Suffolk presenter Terry Baxter, who is now chief executive of Inspire Suffolk and chairman of Ipswich Central, will again be hosting the ceremony.

Three selected finalists in each category will receive places at the event. Other people interested in attending can pre-register for tickets at the awards website.

Full details of the awards, and their sponsors, are now available elsewhere on this website. The EADT would like to extend its thanks to EDF Energy and Suffolk Chamber for their continued support, and also to all our other category sponsors, many of which have also been supporting the awards for many years while others are new for 2015.

At least two more categories are due to be added in the coming weeks. A Medium Business category will cover the £1million to £5million annual turnover range (with the Small Business and Large Business categories already launched covering firms with turnover below and above this range) and there will also be an Environment and Sustainability category to recognise businesses going the extra mile in terms of their “green” credentials.

Full details of these categories will be announced within the EADT’s weekly BusinessEast supplement and will also be added to the awards website when available.

The awards are free to enter and the application process has been designed to be as quick and easy as possible, so why not check out which categories your business could enter?

After all, you have nothing to lose but potentially a great deal to gain, with success in the awards not only providing recognition with the region’s business community but also, as previous winners testify, a boost to morale in the workplace and a useful tool for marketing.

The deadline for entries is April 22 and businesses can enter as many categories as they wish, provided they meet the criteria. Good luck!

Duncan Brodie
Business Editor
East Anglian Daily Times