The UK Rural Business Awards winners for 2021 were announced on Thursday, 25 February 2021.
Best Rural Start Up Business category was won by a company called: accessible holiday escapes based in Flintshire.
Best Rural Diversification Project category was won by a company called: Moody Cow Welch kitchen and farm shop.
Best Rural Retail Business category was won by a company called: Musgrove Willows based in Somerset
Best Rural Professional Services Business category was won by a company called: the great out-tours based in East Sussex
Best Rural Creative or Artisan Business category was won by a company called: Romney Marsh wools based in Kent
Best Rural Social Enterprise, Charity or Community Project category was won by a company called: Abberton rural training based in Essex
Best Rural Tourism Business category was won by a company called: the The Wensleydale Experience based in North Yorkshire
Best Rural Recreational or Outdoor Pursuits Business category was won by a company called: Newlands Adventure Centre & Keswick Climbing Wall based in Cumbria
Best Rural Food Business category was won by a company called: St Ewe Free Range Eggs based in Cornwall
Best Rural Drink Business category was won by a company called: Wild Fox Distillery based in Lancashire
Best Rural Innovation category was won by a company called: PM Training and Assessing Ltd based in Powys
The Sustainability and Environmental Impact Award category was won by a company called: The Oak Barn, Frame Farm based in Kent
The Triumph Over Adversity Award category was won by a company called: World of James Herriot based in North Yorkshire
Participating in the Rural Business Awards is an excellent chance to celebrate what you’ve done so far, as well as to develop the tools for further success! It can even have a very real impact on your company. If you qualify for an award, you’ll receive national and regional recognition, cementing your company’s reputation nationwide. But how do you find out if you’re eligible? What do the awards really represent?
The Awards are run by the National Academy of Marketing. Established in 1978, the academy sponsors events that celebrate the creative and strategic minds of small businesses. Among the sponsors have been the MR&S Companies and the Starz Network. The goal of the academy’s marketing program is to provide information to businesses and their consumers on how their products or services can be best marketed through a combination of digital and conventional marketing strategies. Sponsors of the awards co-founder’s program include AT & T, Geico, GlaxoSmithKline, Kohl’s, Nike, Prudential Financial and Time Warner.
The academy has a list of the current Winners of the Rural Business Awards, which can be found on their website. Among the recent winners are Campbell Marketing, Energy Brands, Fastclick, I-Biz, Mattress Warehouse, O’odham, Realtor Finder, Surefire, VMI and more. As the co-founder of one of the nominate companies, I was thrilled to learn about the award winners and learn about the specific digital marketing solutions that were used in each organization. When you see the websites of all the winners, you’ll see how varied their use of digital and/or conventional marketing platforms are!
The goals of the RBA are to inspire local businesses operating in the rural economy, increase the range of available holiday rentals, and help highlight the unique products and services of the winner’s companies. Each year, we also invite awardees to a Rural Business Awards Ceremony where they receive a crystal award along with information about their accomplishments. The awards are meant to celebrate and encourage those operating in the rural economy. The ceremony is hosted by the President and co-chairs are Representatives Waxman, Gooden and Butler. We also invite you to attend as we honor the winners of this year’s awardees.
If you’re looking for a great way to get your company’s name out in the community, consider presenting your company at the RBA’s annual awards ceremony. You can present your award – a gold one – in the traditional way of putting on a silver ribbon or giving out a trophy to the top ranking awardees. However, if you would like something a little more memorable than those two choices, why not host your own awards ceremony with an expert panel? With an award for your company that features your logo and/or business name, you’ll have your name out in the community telling everyone just how proud you are of your hard work and how impressive you are as a business owner.
The awards you present at the RBA’s annual business awards ceremonies are actually quite impressive, not just because of the cash prize you are presenting to the best performing businesses. The judges that select the awardees will be impressed by the presentation of the awards as well. They will also be pleased with the diversity of the business and the fact that many of the awardees are from the rural areas. The fact is that many rural businesses do not have the exposure to the opportunities and customers that are offered by larger city businesses. This is one of the reasons why you see so many of those smaller businesses succeeding.