YORKSHIRE companies that are having an impact nationally and internationally were recognised at the 2016 Business Masters.
Sky Betting and Gaming started 2015 by spinning out from Sky and the online gaming company has maintained a frenetic pace, adding 200 staff to its Leeds and Sheffield teams as part of its continued expansion. The company, which is a big player in the region’s digital sector, has increased turnover by around two-thirds in two years, to £250m, and took home the Fast Growth Business of the Year, sponsored by Clarion.
Ilkley-based Spooner Industries won the Medium Business of the Year, sponsored by RSM. The company has enjoyed strong growth that has been recognised by visits from the Prime Minister and Chancellor, with export sales being a crucial part of the business’s success.
Turner & Townsend is a long-standing Yorkshire company with a big international reputation. It has added £70m in revenues in two years, helped by a number of client wins in the region including the Kirkstall Forge scheme in Leeds. The judges selected Turner & Townsend as the winner of the Large Business of the Year, sponsored by Cenkos, for its strong financial performance and also its focus on its staff and the communities in which it works.
Another company with a strong focus on its staff is Kings Security, which won the Employer of the Year Award. Kings, which is based in Bradford, launched its in-house training academy at the end of 2014 to deliver major NVQ schemes, while it also works hard to create the sense of its workforce being “an extended family”.
The Innovator of the Year award went to Harrison Spinks. The manufacturer is enjoying strong sales growth from its innovations in three areas – the success of its patented spring technology in its mattresses, the application of those technologies to a range of other uses, included footwear and car seats, and its progress in creating more sustainable and environmentally-friendly processes and products.
