You are viewing your 1 free article this month. Login to read more articles.
Independent children’s publisher Nosy Crow was last night (25th November) named Young Company of the Year 2014 in the Growing Business Awards.
Nosy Crow beat five other companies shortlisted in the same category, including popcorn maker Propercorn and cement producer Hope Construction Materials.
The Growing Business Awards are hosted by trade magazine Real Business and supported by the CBI in association with Lloyds Bank.
M.d. Kate Wilson said: “At a time when press coverage of the publishing business is full of gloom and doom, it’s a great triumph not just for Nosy Crow, but for the industry, to win against such a strong and varied shortlist. Winning industry-specific awards is great, but there’s something special about being recognised in a wider arena.”
The judges said Wilson is an “exceptional entrepreneur” whose “extreme focus and maximum personal effort is evident in everything she does”.
In a Nosy Crow blogpost last month, Wilson said she had to fly back from Frankfurt especially for an interview with the award organisers. “As soon as we knew we were shortlisted, we had to move 12 of my appointments with publishers from around the world… Luckily, we’ve managed to make it all work out, so I will be flying back to London on Wednesday evening, and then out again at 11.45am on Thursday morning… in time for a 3.30pm meeting in Frankfurt on the same day.”
The award comes only weeks after Wilson was named most inspiring digital publishing person at the FutureBook Innovation Awards.
The company’s Jack and the Beanstalk also picked up the award for best children's fiction digital book, a title described by judge and consultant Anna Rafferty as "charming, witty and compulsive".
Nosy Crow also won Nectar Business Small Business of the Year in September and was last month was named one of the Smarta100 companies – the 100 most resourceful, inspiring and disruptive small businesses in the UK.
The other awards given last night were the retail award, made in Britain award, export champion award, innovator of the year, young entrepreneur of the year, brand builder award, digital championaward, entrepreneur of the year, growing business of the year (smaller company), growing business of the year (mid-sized company) and growing business of the year (larger company).