Modular building specialist M-AR is on the march.
A winner of a key category at the Hull Live Business Awards in 2021, the company had just completed a huge expansion into the city from Melton. And the move is delivering, as operations director Ryan Gledard outlined, as he reflected on last year’s success as entries are now welcomed for 2022.
M-AR was named Large Business of the Year, and growth continues for the Freightliner Road firm as it looks to build on a strong start and further scale up the off-site contractor operation.
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Mr Geldard said: “We are a business that hadn’t really sought external recognition in previous years, but we were keen to show the region how much we’ve grown and what a great place it is to work and the team we have.
“We were overjoyed to win Business of the Year in 2021, receiving external recognition for the team’s growth and our regional importance stoked positive morale across the whole organisation and allowed us to celebrate with our clients and supply chain who have shared in our success.
“We found the whole process exciting. Meeting as a team to formulate our submission allowed us to reflect on our achievements and this brought us closer as a team after a crazy work year! Finding out we were shortlisted generated suspense in our team and then we had such a great evening at the awards… you guys sure know how to do events in style! We already felt like winners, so winning the award was the cherry on top!”
Fast forward from that November night and M-AR is heading for sales of £35 million, having been at £20 million when the submission was made. Then a team of 60, a further 10 have joined and the business is actively recruiting.
“We’re still growing and seeing demand for our services rising,” Mr Geldard said. “Since 2019 we’ve gone from £7 million turnover to £31 million last year, that’s a 50 per cent increase in revenue from just last year.
“Managing that growth and remaining profitable is a real testament to our team and we’re incredibly proud of the people we have and the business we are creating.
“We’re quite ambitious but pragmatic about risk and opportunities in the current economic climate. We’re actively searching for partnerships so that we can scale up our operation with the ambition to deliver our services into every community in the UK.”
Entries can be made now for the Hull live Business Awards, with this year’s event taking place on November 17. Success, effort and innovation is celebrated by the community, building on the stories documented via dedicated website Business Live and the Hull Live and Hull Daily Mail titles.
A total of 14 awards will be presented, with the closing date for nominations being Sunday, September 25. All applications are made via the dedicated website www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk . Some are open to self nomination, while lifetime contribution is a closed category and not open for entries.
Tickets are also on sale now for the event, held once again at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Hull.
Reach Recruitment returns as headline sponsor for a second year.
Hull Live Business Awards 2022 Categories and Criteria:
Apprentice of the Year
This award is open to an apprentice who has shown outstanding progress and commitment to their own personal development. The apprentice Is defined as a person who is learning a trade from a skilled employer, having agreed to work for a fixed period. The nominee must have been employed by their current employer for a minimum of 12 months before the closing date.
This award seeks to acknowledge and celebrate an apprentice’s exceptional contributions to their workplace. The successful entrant will be measured against the following criteria:
- Commitment: demonstrates commitment to your personal development and progression
- Contribution: shows outstanding contribution to your workplace - in particular, areas or projects where you have exceeded expectations
- Success: demonstrates inspirational levels of achievement and attainment.
Nominations or self-nominations can be made for this category.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Sponsored by Hull City Council
For business people under the age of 30 (at September 26, 2022) who have demonstrated a high degree of entrepreneurship, creativity and vision for the future. T
The judges will be looking to identify an individual who has set up a business or has had a significant influence in the business, that has set and achieved objectives within its business plans and established a position of sustainable profitability and success. In addition to this judges will want to see an understanding of the relationship between your own development and the success of the business.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Entrepreneur of the Year
Sponsored by Sewell Group
Open to business people aged 30 years or over (at September 26, 2022) the award will go to someone who has had a big impact, either running their own business or working as part of a business.
Judges will be looking for someone who can demonstrate:
- How their actions and strategies have been instrumental to the success of the business.
- Evidence of strong financial performance, including the clear identification of an opportunity that has had a measurable impact on the success of business.
- Enterprising behaviours such as participation, risk-taking, management and leadership, vision, originality and innovation.
- How they have overcome barriers to achieve at a high standard (ie social, geographical or physical).
- A positive impact on the wider economy and local communities through employment, additional work as mentors or in the voluntary sector.
Nominations can be made by the entrant if they run their own business, or a sponsor or nominee from the business they work for.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Environmental and Sustainability Award
Sponsored by Wykeland Beal
This category recognises outstanding performance in environmental responsiveness and sustainable activity. The winner of this award will be a company that:
- Is working towards sustainable development goals and can demonstrate the impact.
- Taking active green steps towards more environmentally-conscious operations and ethics.
- Made improvements in energy-efficiency, carbon reduction or sustainable working.
- May have introduced environmental policies across the business, isusing green communications or endorsing carbon footprint reduction
- Strategy, policies and foresight will reflect a well-considered green approach – rather than fractional, ad-hoc actions.
Our judges want to feel inspired by a powerful story and are looking to see where nominees have come from, the obstacles faced, and what motivates them to keep going and what their biggest achievements are.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Innovation and Technology Award
The Innovation and Technology Award will reward the company that has developed the most innovative new product, system or process over the past year, and can demonstrate the positive impact it has had on the business. Judges will be looking for businesses that can show:
- A clear vision of what the innovation project, product, system or process had to achieve.
- How the product was developed.
- Gains in revenue or market share.
- The overall benefits to the business or its customer.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Customer Focus Award
This aims to honour firms which give great service and are truly dedicated to their users. Judges will be looking at how customer service strategy has:
- Increased growth or market share.
- Improved financial performance.
- Embedded ethical or sustainable practice.
- Enhanced customer delivery and engagement.
- More effective leadership and management.
- More engaged and motivated staff.
- Optimised innovation and improved operational excellence.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Business in the Community Award
Sponsored by KCom
This award aims to recognise businesses which have made an outstanding contribution to the community within which they are based. Judges will be looking for a business that can show proactive commitment to putting something back into the local community. This could be by:
- Providing financial support to charities or community projects.
- Giving practical assistance in terms of time or expertise.
- Allowing charity organisations, schools or community groups to benefit from the resources of the business. For social enterprises, the activity should be outside their core purpose.
- Particular emphasis will be placed upon the proportionate investment by businesses in terms of time and effort, as opposed to pure cash contributions.
- Entrants need to demonstrate their commitment to corporate social responsibility.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Training and Development
The judges will be looking for an organisation that:
- Demonstrates positive commitment to the ongoing training and education of its employees.
- Can prove how investment in staff training has brought success.
- Shows staff have gained the necessary skills to maximise their contribution.
- Can show how its people development strategies have improved its performance and created a committed, motivated and effective workforce.
Diversity and Inclusion Award
Sponsored by University of Hull
This award recognises organisations for harnessing a truly diverse workforce that excels in their commitment to equality and inclusion across all strands of diversity. The category will cover excellence in all areas of diversity including age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, race and religion.
The judges will be looking for a vanguard in business that can demonstrate an effective inclusion and diversity strategy that goes beyond legal compliance and seeks to add value to an organisation, contributing to employee wellbeing and engagement.
Entries must demonstrate how the business has gone above and beyond their corporate social responsibility, shown commitment and dedication to equality, can exhibit positive results on the organisational culture and prove that they are a true champion of diversity and inclusion.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Employee of the Year
Sponsored by ResQ
The Employee Of The Year Award has been designed to celebrate someone who really makes a difference to their business and who deserves recognition.
It might be someone whose attitude and example really stimulates all those around him or her. Equally, it could be someone who has overcome real difficulties, or someone who shows exceptional customer service.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Start-up Business of the Year
Sponsored by MKM and Horncastle Group
This award will go to an organisation that:
- Has been established within the past two and a half years.
- Demonstrates evidence of entrepreneurship and/or innovation.
- Has defied challenging economic conditions to succeed, grow and thrive.
- Can evidence future growth potential.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Business of the Year (up to 50 employees)
Sponsored by Connexin
This category is open to companies with fewer than 50 employees. The judges will be looking at all aspects of a company's performance, paying particular attention to:
- Managerial and financial performance.
- Evidence of success against targets set.
- Potential for growth.
- Long-term plans and company strategy.
- Product and service development.
- Staff training and development.
Entries should include financial performance, be it turnover, net profit, year-on-year performance.
All information will be treated in the strictest of confidence.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Business of the Year (over 51 employees)
This category is open to companies with more than 51 employees. Judges will be looking at all aspects of company performance, paying particular attention to:
- Managerial and financial performance.
- Evidence of success against targets set.
- Long-term plans and company strategy.
- Product and service development.
- Staff training and development.
Entries should include financial performance, be it turnover, net profit, year-on-year performance.
All information will be treated in the strictest of confidence.
Enter here: www.HLBusinessawards.co.uk
Lifetime Contribution Award
Sponsored by Reach Recruitment
This accolade will be awarded to a key business person in the region who will be heralded for making positive, lasting differences to the local economy and community.
This is a closed category with no nomination process, the winner will be decided by the editor and the headline sponsor.
