2015 Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards for SMEs Now Open for Entries

The Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards are Ireland’s longest running award scheme for Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and over the years have recognised and supported the potential of many now high-profile businesses and entrepreneurs.

The 2015 awards are now open for entries to SMEs across all sectors throughout the island of Ireland. You can apply online using the dedicated website: BusinessAchieversAward.com.

Speaking from the launch, former winner, Ronan Clarke, said: “Winning the Business Start-Up Award at the 2014 Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards has given us huge credibility and really helped us to position ourselves on the global stage. In the six months since winning the award, we have expanded our distribution network to South America and Australia, and that expansion is continuing all the time.”

“Building on that renewed global outlook, this June we will launch e-commerce sites in French, German, Italian and Spanish for the first time. In addition, we have re-branded the company from ‘Smart Wall Paint’ to ‘Smarter Surfaces’, in recognition of the fact that we now offer a wide range of products, outside of our flagship whiteboard paint, so winning the award really has been a catalyst for huge change for us.”

Also speaking about the awards, Eddie Cullen, Managing Director of Commercial Banking at Ulster Bank, said: “At Ulster Bank we are committed to providing support to Irish businesses, from start-ups, right up to global organisations, and these Awards are at the heart of that commitment.”

“The long list of previous winners includes a huge number of  successful companies that won awards in their infancy and have gone on to become strong, household names, including Realex Payments, Glenisk Foods, The Sofa Factory and Tayto Park. With the 2015 Awards, we look forward to hearing the stories of many more businesses from all over the country, and recognising some of Ireland’s finest businesses and entrepreneurs.”

The overall winner will receive a comprehensive prize package, including a €50,000 publishing bursary with the Irish Independent, business mentoring from Enterprise Ireland, a full-service communications workshop, as well as national and regional media exposure.

Run in association with the Irish Independent, Enterprise Ireland, InterTradeIreland and SmallBusinessCan.com, the awards are now open for entry at BusinessAchieversAward.com.
The deadline for submissions is Friday, 25^th September.