Geraldine Grandidier of Tidy Books is the “Entrepreneur of the Year” winner at FSB London Business Awards

8 years ago

GLE oneLondon proudly sponsored the “Entrepreneur of the Year” category and presented the award to the winner, Geraldine Grandidier of Tidy Books Europe Ltd. Tidy Books makes award winning children’s bookcases which enable kids to grow a love of books. Geraldine made the first bookcase for her daughter and started the business with £500 in a violin workshop. Now, Tidy Bookcase is an international business, with a clear business model, and the ambition and infrastructure to grow.

The business excellence of SMEs and their entrepreneurial owners was celebrated at a Grand Final, which was held at the Pullman Hotel, St Pancras, last night (Thursday, July 30).

Geraldine faced a strong challenge from a very commendable runner-up, Shubber Raja from MediLink Consulting. Founded just four years ago, MediLink Consulting is one of Britain’s fastest-growing medical recruitment consultancies, providing locum doctors, nurses and allied healthcare professionals to the NHS and independent hospitals.

This was a fiercely contested award and among the other finalists were a former banker now owner of a business advisory company, a curious traveller, and a New Zealand-born mum of two. The other entrepreneurs and their businesses are:

> Kat Wczesniak, Kat’s Adventures Limited:

CKAC is a community of curious and interesting people who want to develop and grow through exploring the world, travelling and constantly getting out of their comfort zone and expanding their horizons. The company says: “It may look like we are selling holidays and events, but we are in fact selling joy, happiness and friendships.”

> Daryl Woodhouse, Advantage Business Partnerships:

Founded in 2012, Advantage advises, trains and consults organisations to help them grow and develop talent to improve both business and individual performance results. Advantage has a varied, multi sector client portfolio of large, medium and small firms, with a national team including 25 experienced coaches, consultants and business trainers.

> Emma Rigby, Love Your DoorStep:

Love Your DoorStep is an affordable and very proactive form of advertising providing a service for local people and putting them directly in touch with the products and services they need on their DoorStep. It also discusses and moderates local news and issues happening across Enfield. It is a central platform for information sharing carefully moderated and run by a local team of dedicated people. The company describes itself as a sustainable business model that is changing the way communities work. It is the central point in a community working with town centre teams, local councils, schools, the police, community groups, local people and local businesses.

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For more information about the awards or the finalists, call David Tooley on 07760 230238

For more information about GLE oneLondon call Denitsa Todorova on 020 7940 1577

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About GLE oneLondon- Finance and Support for New and Growing Businesses

GLE is a leading not-for-profit provider of responsible finance for small businesses in the UK. We have over 15 years’ experience of lending to start up and growing businesses. We work alongside high street banks, finance houses and accountants to help small businesses who are unable to meet their finance requirements from mainstream sources.

We are part of the responsible finance industry and we tailor our services locally to the needs of individuals or businesses. We offer a personal service, a supportive approach and a real alternative to traditional bank lenders and finance providers. At our heart is the idea of bringing social and economic benefits to people, places and businesses. We create opportunity by providing access to finance to those who are often excluded. We believe fair finance can build stronger economies and communities.

We want to see a future where access to affordable finance is available locally to all who need it, whether they are businesses, organisations or individuals – for us that’s responsible finance.

What's on offer:

• Unsecured business loans of up to £70,000

• Competitive fixed interest rates from 5.02% to 16%, so you know where you stand every month

• Advice, training and mentoring for new and growing businesses

• No early repayment fees so you can repay in full early at no extra cost

• No automated lending decisions, we look at each case individually

About GLE oneLondon Ltd

GLE oneLondon is a leading not-for-profit provider of responsible finance for small businesses in the UK. We have over 15 years’ experience of lending to start up and growing businesses. We work alongside high street banks, finance houses and accountants to help small businesses who are unable to meet their finance requirements from mainstream sources. We are part of the responsible finance industry and we tailor our services locally to the needs of individuals or businesses. We offer a personal service, a supportive approach and a real alternative to traditional bank lenders and finance providers. At our heart is the idea of bringing social and economic benefits to people, places and businesses. We create opportunity by providing access to finance to those who are often excluded. We believe fair finance can build stronger economies and communities. We want to see a future where access to fair finance is available locally to all who need it, whether they are businesses, organisations or individuals – for us that’s responsible finance.