Vote now for your North West Newcomer

A FAST-growing sweets business, a new funding partner for life science and technology companies and a business software provider will compete for the title of Newcomer at the North West Business Masters awards next month.

In a highly-competitive category, which saw record numbers of entries this year, the judges selected Goody Good Stuff, Integral Finance and m-hance as the three strongest contenders for the prestigious awards.

Executives from the the three businesses will be interviewed at the unique awards lunch on April 25 at the Lowry Hotel, before the winners are announced.

Voting is now closed.

Melissa Burton, founder of Goody Good Stuff, the Lancashire-based ‘free-from’ sweet brand, is competing in the Masters for a second year. In 2012, the business, which was launched in 2010, was pipped to the post in the Newcomer category by RedX Pharma.

Goody Good Stuff’s range of 10 products, which contain only natural flavours and colourings and are free from gelatine too, are sold in 20,000 stores around the world, including 97% of US chain 7-Eleven’s stores.

Closer to home its products are sold in Adsa, Waitrose, Spar and Ocado.

Exporting to 27 export markets already, turnover this year is forecast to rocket from £1.2m to close to £10m in 2013.

Integral Finance  began trading in July 2012 and is the brainchild of Mark Hollingworth and Philip Hewetson.

Formerly with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca, Integral Finance, Mr Hollingworth’s vision for Integral is for it to be a ‘one-stop shop’ for finance expertise for new and growing technology and life sciences companies in the region.

Among the services the business provides are: fund-raising support; part-time, out-souced finance director input; tax expertise; supply chain financial management and other related services.

Based on Manchester Science Park Integral says it has identified a large natural market in the region with 450 life science companies and many more technology businesses working in the region. Its USP is that becausee it is small it is more flexible and responsive than larger competitors.

The third finalist in the North West Newcomer category is m-hance, a Stockport-headquartered group which was formed by the acquisition of  seven software businesses in November 2011.

The company, which has this year launched more than 20 new products, has more than 2,400 mid-market customers in the US, Ireland and the UK.

m-hance’s aim is to to be a leader in the consolidation in the sector and offer a broader range of services to customers as a result.

Led by experienced software entrepreneur Mark Thompson, m-hance serves customers in a wide range of sectors including manufacturers, financial services firms, education and not-for-profit organisations.

Last year the group, which is on course for revenues of £25m in 2013, created 50 jobs and launched a graduate recruitment scheme.

Voting is now closed.