Business of the Year 2025
Category criteria
- The Business of the Year category is open to businesses with an annual turnover of more than £5 million.
- Entrants should demonstrate outstanding success during their most recent full financial year.
- Success can be judged on metrics ranging from exceptional growth and increased trading profit through to the development of services, developing staff, products or new production techniques.
- The judges will welcome entries from businesses committed to corporate social responsibility.
Browns Distribution
Business of the Year entrant
Despite a turbulent climate for its sector, Browns Distribution has grown its turnover from £14.1 million in 2020 to a projected £23.4 million in 2025.
The third-generation family-owned business, which launched in 1955 with a single van to transport Staffordshire pottery, serves some of the largest companies in the UK and its reach extends to more than 30 European countries.
In 2023 the company invested £9 million in a new headquarters and distribution centre in Stoke-on-Trent. It has invested £3.5 million in fleet renewal since 2023 – its average articulated fleet age is 2.1 years compared to the UK average of 8 years.
In a year when more than 500 hauliers have entered administration, Browns Distribution has stayed focused, financially sound and forward thinking.
It has strengthened its senior team with strategic appointments to support growth, digital innovation and service expansion.
The company has been actively involved in shaping the industry through engagement with the industry bodies, sharing insight on driver shortages, supply chain developments and sustainability.
An eCommerce division, PalletOnline, addresses a market need for business-to-consumer pallet delivery across the UK and Europe and established the company as a key player in eCommerce logistics.
Browns is also a shareholder of Palletline, the UK’s leading palletised distribution network, and is the largest inputter of freight into its network.
Browns Distribution has entered the Business of the Year and Growth categories of the University of Staffordshire Business Awards.
We Buy Any Motorcaravan
Business of the Year entrant
We Buy Any Motorcaravan has gone from a two-person business to having 35 staff and a £25.5 million annual turnover.
The Burton upon Trent business is now owned and run by husband and wife team Shane Malpass and Victoria Malpass after being launched by Shane and his dad Neil.
The journey began in 2007 when Shane, aged just 19 at the time, teamed up with his father, Neil. Neil had decades of industry experience and Shane brought ambition and entrepreneurial drive.
They started by sourcing motorhomes for a dealership where Neil worked. When the 2008 recession hit they pivoted to launch their own business — Caravan and Motorhome Sales — and in the first year they generated £309,877 in sales. By 2012 they had an annual turnover of more than £1 million.
The true growth story began in 2015 when Shane spotted a gap in the market. He launched We Buy Any Motorcaravan, invested in a user-friendly website and began running targeted Google Ads. The shift from trade-only to direct-to-consumer sourcing allowed the business to scale dramatically.
From a £1.5 million turnover in 2016, the company grew to £2.28 million in 2017. It remained steady through 2018 and 2019 while Shane invested in tools, training and team infrastructure. Then came the turning point — the COVID-19 pandemic.
Where many companies paused, Shane adapted. He introduced video walkaround appraisals, sent condition reports to buyers and moved operations online almost overnight. It kept the business moving at a time when face-to-face contact was impossible. That year turnover nearly doubled to £4.58 million.
In 2021 turnover grew to £12.4 million. In 2022, £19.8 million in 2022 and in 2023 it reached £25.5 million. Even in 2024, as the average purchase price of motorhomes dropped and the market cooled, the business remained strong with £21.4 million in turnover.
To support continued expansion the company is developing an AI-powered motorhome pricing tool, enabling staff to generate accurate quotes instantly.
We Buy Any Motorcaravan has been nominated in the Business of the Year and Growth categories of the University of Staffordshire Business awards by staff member Paul Anthony Holmes.
He said: “From a father-and-son startup to a national leader in the motorhome industry, We Buy Any Motorcaravan is an incredible example of what can be achieved when vision, innovation and values come together. And with Shane at the helm, this is only the beginning.”
Capula
Business of the Year entrant
Capula has been a leader in advanced system integration for decades, focusing on operational technology and digital transformation.
The company, which has its headquarters in Stone, optimises energy efficiency, intelligent asset management and operational performance for asset and energy-intensive clients.
It delivers critical technical solutions across automation control, panel build, cyber security, digitalisation and industrial operational technology programmes. This ensures the integrity, safety and security of complex solutions in the industrial landscape, addressing current and future challenges.
Capula’s clients operate and control some of the UK's most strategically important critical national infrastructure. With more than 50 years of experience, Capula is committed to supporting low carbon, sustainable and critical infrastructure. Its customer-focused approach combines technical expertise with market-led insight, enabling it to design, engineer and implement leading solutions consistently.
Over recent years Capula has experienced significant growth in sales turnover and profile development, nearly doubling in size. It has seen consistent growth in its main sectors - energy and nuclear—while expanding into adjacent industries such as life sciences, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and aerospace.
In 2024 Capula's revenue grew by 34%, with increased profitability, cash generation and overall financial performance.
Capula is predicting continued growth in its Staffordshire region as well as establishing further its geographical footprint in the UK including Cumbria, Yorkshire, Berkshire and Scotland to better service its clients and enhance its service offerings.
With more than 400 employees, Capula has consistently demonstrated outstanding performance in financial management, leadership, employee learning and development, career development, environmental sustainability, corporate social responsibility and future growth planning.
The company has consistently exceeded financial targets, with revenue, profit,and sales all well ahead of budget. This robust financial health has enabled it to reinvest in its people and infrastructure, ensuring sustained growth and stability. Its leadership team, led by Managing Director Simon Coombs, is committed to fostering a culture of excellence and innovation. The senior leadership team’s strategic vision and effective management have been pivotal in navigating market challenges and driving the company’s success.
Capula has entered the Business of the Year category of the University of Staffordshire Business Awards.
Mincrete
Business of the Year entrant
Richard Evans has grown Burslem-based Mincrete into a business with a £15 million annual turnover.
He has succeeded in business against the backdrop of personal struggles. 25 years ago he was in the grip of acute alcoholism but turned his life around after spending time in rehab. He has now been sober for 16 years and has even bought a financial stake in the clinic where he received his treatment.
Richard has been nominated as Entrepreneur of the Year in University of Staffordshire Business Awards by his proud daughter, Elizabeth Evans, who is University of Staffordshire Business Management alumna and now works at Mincrete.
Mincrete, which specialises in ready mixed concrete, has also been nominated as Business of the Year.
Elizabeth said: “The specific set of intellectual skills that he possesses, combined with personality traits of compassion, passion, premeditation and stoicism is the fundamental key to Mincrete's success and ability to weather uncertain and often cruel times.
“His rise from the ashes is an astonishing story that not only resonates with so many people but provides something that every person needs, hope.”
Richard’s catchphrase in ‘you’ve got to give it away to keep it’, which has seen him buying trolley loads of Christmas presents for families in need and giving up his free time to support people struggling with alcoholism or gambling.
Under Richard’s leadership the Mincrete turnover has grown exponentially. It has also recently gained British Standards Institution accreditation.
Richard’s business philosophy centres around sustainable and incremental growth, social responsibility and corporate social responsibility. This includes creating a low-carbon alternative concrete range called APOGEE to allow for lower carbon footprints across the supply chain.
Richard recently bought Nettlebank Memorials and is planning to expand further into the funerals and graveyard sector.
Elizabeth added: “Richard’s story is one of extraordinary transformation of a man who rebuilt his life from nothing, who went on to build a thriving business that contributes to the local economy and provides valuable services.
“He has achieved remarkable financial growth for Mincrete, attained industry recognition with BSI accreditation and expanded his vision to include other ventures that serve the community. He has done all of this while remaining grounded, compassionate and committed to giving back.
“I know he’s my dad but he really is an exceptional person. He just fills you with a lot of hope.”
The Catering Butcher/HH Jackson
Business of the Year nominee
A Stoke-on-Trent butchers celebrates its 100th anniversary next year and is the longest-serving stallholder in Stoke Market - but by moving with the times and responding to customer demands has secured its place as a 21st-century business with a multi-million-pound turnover.
HH Jackson, which is also known as The Catering Butcher, has a stall in Stoke Market and a traditional shop in Fenpark Road, Fenton, that was set up by the business’s founder, farmer Herbert Henry Jackson.
The Catering Butcher was set up 20 years ago and has its own premises in Sutherland Road, Longton. It’s become a highly regarded catering and hospitality butchers for Staffordshire, Cheshire and Manchester, supplying to many high profile and prestigious clients.
The Catering Butcher opened a factory shop to serve the public during the pandemic, which proved so popular it has stayed.
All three parts of the business are run by members of the Jackson family including Herbert’s grandson, Arthur, running the Fenpark Road shop, fourth generation family member Mark Jackson running the stall in Stoke Market and fourth generation family member Dave Jackson is Managing Director of The Catering Butcher. Dave’s son Lewis, the fifth generation of HH Jackson butchers, works in the shop.
“We opened the factory shop during the pandemic so we could open our doors to the public and it’s proved to be a great business. It’s a beautiful shop and really high end. People can buy small portions, catering portions and pretty much any cut of meat they could ask for,” said Dave Jackson.
“Our customers include many of the regions leading catering and hospitality businesses such as Paragon Pubs.”
The business, which has around 50 employees across the group, has been nominated in the Business of the Year category of the University of Staffordshire Business Awards by customer Steve Crowe.
Steve, a chef and food content creator, is based in Manchester but buys his meat from The Catering Butcher because he says the service he receives is better than anything he can get closer to home.
“They’ve really helped me on a personal level and also with my business,” said Steve. “I’ve built up such a rapport with the shop manager that we’ve become good friends.
“I specialise in barbecue and outdoor cooking. If there’s anything that I want that I wouldn’t be able to get from a normal butchers, I know I can get it from them.
“I’ll go in there and ask for some obscure cut that another butcher would have to order in for me, but they just tell me to wait 10 minutes and go and prepare it there and then. I can get anything I want and they’re so enthusiastic.”