ALL BOYS AGAIN FOR "BUSINESS OSCARS"!
(9 September 2003)

The 120 finalists competing for the 2003 UK "Business Oscars" were announced today ahead of the National Business Awards ceremony. FTSE 100s and blue chip companies are this year competing alongside brand new ventures and SMEs in the search for the nation's top business performers. Although ethnic minorities are represented with Shelim Hussain of EuroFoods UK and Surinder Arora of Arora Holdings competing for the Entrepreneur of the Year Award, there are no women shortlisted in the Business Leader of the Year category.

The shortlist includes 10 of the top current UK business leaders, who have been nominated for The CSC Business Leader of the Year Award. The title went to Marks & Spencer Chairman Luc Vandevelde last year. And competing for a "business Oscar" for the very first time are students taking part in It's The Biz!, a brand new competition, led by the entrepreneur Nasa Khan, Chairman of The Accessory People, to encourage and inspire a brand new generation of British entrepreneurs.

The finalists competing for the It's The Biz! Student Enterprise Award, presented in association with Channel 4 Learning, will sit alongside around 1,500 captains of industry, thought leaders and other VIPs gathered for The National Business Awards, which take place on November 11 at The Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Competing for the coveted title Business of Year are King Vehicle Engineering Limited, Market Harborough; Cobham plc, Wimborne, Dorset; BBC Worldwide; and two Nottingham based companies, ClinPhone Group Limited and Experian International.

The five inspirational business gurus competing for The National Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year Award are: Simon Nixon, Chief Executive Officer, Moneysupermarket.com, Ewloe, Cheshire; Sam Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer, Edotech Limited, Tewkesbury; Nigel Apperley, Chief Executive Officer, Internetdirect.co.uk, Huddersfield; Shelim Hussain, Managing Director, Euro Foods UK Limited, Newport, South Wales; and Surinder Arora, Chairman, Arora Holdings Limited, Middlesex.

Phil Forrest, Chairman of The National Business Awards judging panel said: "A strongly emerging theme from this year's Awards programme is one of reinvention being a key driver of success in many businesses in many industries. Taking a new view of the future has helped many businesses enjoy a new period of growth and profit."

The National Business Awards are open to companies of all sizes and sectors to celebrate the diversity of business in the UK.

THE NATIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS 2003 FINALISTS

The CSC Business Leader of the Year Award

• Sir Martin Sorrell, Group Chief Executive WPP plc
• David Prosser, Group Chief Executive, Legal and General plc
• Charles Banks, Group Chief Executive, Wolseley plc
• Sir Terry Leahy, Chief Executive, Tesco plc
• Keith Butler-Wheelhouse, Chief Executive, Smiths Group plc
• Rolf Borjesson, Chief Executive, Rexam plc
• Fred Goodwin, Group Chief Executive, Royal Bank of Scotland
• Stephen Sunnocks, Chief Executive, New Look Retailers plc
• John Peace, Group Chief Executive, GUS plc
• Pierre Danon, Chief Executive, BT Retail

The Business of the Year Award

• King Vehicle Engineering Limited
• Cobham plc
• ClinPhone Group Limited
• BBC Worldwide Limited
• Experian International

Highly commended

• A1 Pharmaceuticals plc
• The GAME Group plc
• dabs.com
• Esteem Systems plc
• DLA
• GB Railfreight

It's The Biz! Student Enterprise Award

• Michael Lowe - Domain Music, London
• Kelly Fung, Natania Harnal and Yingwan Hong - Minerva Consultancy, London
• The Tiffin Girls' School - Odyssi, Kingston, Surrey
• Paul Willis, Corby, Northants
• The students of Newstead Wood School for Girls, St Olave's Grammar School,
• Eltham College and Bullers Wood, a Young Enterprise Bromley Company - Elixir

The National Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year Award

• Simon Nixon, Chief Executive Officer, Moneysupermarket.com
• Sam Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer, Edotech Limited
• Nigel Apperley, Chief Executive Officer, Internetdirect.co.uk
• Shelim Hussain, Managing Director, Euro Foods UK Limited
• Surinder Arora, Chairman, Arora Holdings Limited

The Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year Award

• Moneyquest UK Limited, Glasgow
• Croft Engineering Services, Warrington, Cheshire,
• Checkprint Limited, Hinckley
• Commhoist Limited, Warrington, Cheshire
• Hall Fire Protection Limited, Manchester

Highly Commended

• I Want One of Those Limited, London
• Bar Convent Enterprises Limited, York

The Employer of the Year Award

• Arm Holdings, Cambridge
• The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, Edinburgh
• Coors Brewers Limited, Burton-upon-Trent
• ClinPhone Group Limited, Nottingham
• Pizza Hut UK Limited, Borehamwood, Herts

Highly commended

• DLA
• Wates Group
• Liverpool Fabrication Company Limited
• Eaga Partnership Limited
• Claridge's

The New Business of the Year Award, sponsored by i3c

• Speeddater Limited, London
• Aura Sports Limited, London
• Direct Excellence Limited, Bristol
• Digital Markings Limited, Richmond, Yorkshire
• N1 Creative Limited, London

The Growth Strategy of the Year Award

• Fopp Limited, Glasgow
• BizzEnergy Limited, Worcester
• Moneysupermarket.com, Ewloe, Cheshire
• Trading Partners, London
• Paradour Properties Limited, Redhill, Surrey

Highly commended

• Seabait Limited
• Lyreco UK Limited
• Eutopia Solutions Limited

The Advertiser of the Year Award

• Vodafone UK
• Esure Insurance Limited
• Yorkshire Water
• 02 UK Limited
• Walkers Snack Foods Limited

The Marketing Strategy of the Year Award

• The Royal Bank of Scotland Commercial Services Limited
• Loyalty Management UK, London
• Innocent Drinks, London,
• West Bromwich Building Society, West Midlands
• Nationwide Building Society

Highly Commended

• Parceline

The Investors in People Award for Outstanding People Development

• ClinPhone Group Limited, Nottingham
• MacPhie of Glenbervie Limited, Scotland
• Innocent Drinks, London
• Lyreco UK Limited, Telford
• Bighams Limited, London

Highly commended

• INA Bearing Company Limited

The E-Business Strategy of the Year Award

• British Telecom plc, Hemel Hempstead
• TM Property Service Limited, Swindon
• www.house.co.uk
• Electrocomponents plc, Oxford
• Avon Cosmetics Limited, Northampton

Highly commended

• BizzEnergy
• dabs.com
• Anixter UK Limited
• BUPA
• Beprofessional

The Best Use of Technology Award

• SembCorp Utilities Teeside Limited, Middlesbrough
• Lincolnshire County Council
• Safeway Stores plc, Hayes, Middlesex
• Travel Inn, Luton, Beds
• AESSeal plc, Rotherham

Highly commended

• T-Mobile UK Limited
• Atkins Rail, Network Rail & Carillion Rail

The Business Innovation of the Year Award

• Caldwells Group Limited, Warrington, Cheshire
• GB Railfreight, London
• Nuaire Holdings Limited, Caerphilly
• Metal FX Technology Limited, Leeds
• Sibus International, Penrith, Cumbria

Highly commended

• Digital Markings Limited
• Sprue Aegis plc
• Bywaters (Leighton) Limited
• Roger Wilde Limited

The Customer Focus Award

• Parceline, Smethwick, West Midlands
• Eclipse Internet, Exeter, Devon
• British Airways London Eye
• first direct, Leeds
• The GAME Group plc, Bracknell, Berks

Highly commended

• Hillarys Blinds
• Dugdale Nutrition

The Customer Service Strategy of the Year Award

• Liverpool City Council
• alldayPA, Manchester
• Oyezstraker Office Supplies Limited, Croydon, Surrey
• Fujitsu Services Limited, Stevenage, Herts
• Telewest Broadband, Woking, Surrey

The Supply Chain Strategy of the Year Award

• Allen Construction Consultancy, Bridgwater, Somerset
• Channel 4 Television, London
• BAA plc, London
• TM Property Services Limited, Swindon
• Safeway plc, Hayes, Middlesex

Highly commended

• Caldwells Group Limited

The Orange Award for Bright Business

• Karen Austin, Croft Engineering Services, Warrington
• Christopher Cowdray, Claridge's, London
• Jessica Paczek, Exposure Promotions Ltd, London
• Ian Brown, Dugdale Nutrition Ltd, Clitheroe, Lancs
• Wendy Irvin, Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, London

Highly commended

• Gareth Edgell, Rullion
• Sue Barlow, Fujitsu Services Ltd

The Corporate Venturing Award

• Kalido
• Fluency
• BT click&buy, Hemel Hempstead
• BT Contact Central, Ipswich, Suffolk
• Insense, Bedford

Highly commended

• British Airways London Eye

The Exporter of the Year Award

• Aircom International, Redhill, Surrey
• Air Resources Limited, Manchester
• Powerscreen International Distribution Limited, Dungannon, Northern Ireland
• BBC Worldwide Limited
• SEOS Limited, Burgess Hill, West Sussex

Highly commended

• M & A Thomson Litho Limited
• John Pring & Son Limited

The Sales Operation of the Year Award

• Lloyds TSB Autolease, Birmingham
• Hertz UK Limited, Hounslow, Middlesex
• O2 UK Limited, Runcorn, Cheshire
• Fujitsu Services Limited, Stevenage, Herts
• Vodafone UK, Newbury, Berkshire

Highly Commended

• Steljes Limited
• ANC Rental Corporation Limited

The Corporate Social Responsibility Award

• J Sainsbury plc
• Tesco Stores Limited
• Abbot Mead Vickers BBDO Limited, London
• Salesforce.com
• Unilever UK

Highly Commended

• Mm02 plc
• West Bromwich Building Society
• Marks & Spencer plc
• HBOS plc
• Blue Chip Feed Limited
• Carillion plc
• British Telecom plc
• EDF Energy
• Cheshire Building Society
• Unum Provident
• Co-Operative Insurance Society
• Safeway Stores plc

The Environmental Awareness Award

• Canary Wharf Group plc, London
• BBC Magazines, London
• East Midlands Airport, Castle Donington, Derby
• Canon Inc, Uxbridge, Middlesex
• ScottishPower plc, Edinburgh

Highly commended

• 3663 First for Foodservice
• Yorkshire Water
• Grundfos Pumps Limited
• Dow Corning Limited

The winners of the National Business Awards will be announced 11 November 2003.