2017 Entrants

Operating in the heart of Sheerness Docks, Olivers Personnel is the perfect example of a “phoenix” business. When Portside Contractors withdrew labour supply from Peel Ports Sheerness after 22 years, Director Lorraine Wade started to work with Peel to ensure that there was a...

In the 18 months since it was established, The Courtyard Restaurant based at Brogdale Farm has already secured a loyal, regular customer base. Co-owners Gloria Parkinson and Bob Giles lead a team of 18 staff members to offer customers wholesome traditional food at reasonable prices; which is...

Over the last 18 years Kent Catering Service has gone from strength-to-strength. The Sheerness-based business installs, repairs and services commercial catering kitchen equipment. The business has built its reputation on providing outstanding customer service, especially for core-customers such as...

The Swale Business Awards are about businesses in the borough that stand out, and House are a business determined to do just that. In the extremely competitive field of estate agency, House are competing with long-established agents and are doing so with the message that “Estate Agents can be...

One of Faversham’s hidden gems, The Great Outdoor Gym Company (TGO) is a growing company with expanding international reach. For over a decade, the business based at Brogdale Farm have led the field in outdoor gym innovation. There are now over 800 TGO installations across the UK, Europe, the...

Operating for three years now, TJ’s E Cigarettes has become a retail powerhouse throughout Kent, with nine stores spread across the county. Starting out on Sheppey, the business has just opened a ninth location on Sittingbourne High Street. E Cigarettes is a challenging sector to work in...

The Swale Business Awards are about businesses of all sizes, and new businesses as much as established ones. Beauty Academy South East has only been trading for a year but in that time they’ve already made an impact in the local business community.  The Beauty Therapy training school...

All businesses are dependent on their customers, but MOT-A-CAR Auto Centre is a business that goes out of their way to prove to customers that they offer a superior service to their competitors. The MOT testing and vehicle servicing specialists are part of the Good Garage Scheme, which gives...

Established in 2014, Carrington Foods have developed a loyal and growing customer base that delights in the delicious variety of chilli sauces, oils and spice mixes the business produces.  Carrington’s main product is a range of chilli ketchup sauces that are infused with various...

The Harmony Therapy Trust is a Swale-based charity providing free supportive and therapeutic treatments to patients living with cancer and other serious chronic life-altering illnesses. Established over seven years ago, it  now has a team of eleven volunteers and over 80 therapists delivering...

Re-entering the Swale Business Awards this year is No Place Like Home, a highly personalised, private companionship and care service for senior residents, which last year won the Customer Service and Commitment Award. Since winning the award last October, the business has gone from...

Our next entrant into the 2017 Swale Business Awards may only have been operating for the last year, but in that time they have experienced an incredible growth. Working directly for homeowners, Luke Blanshard and his team offer something different in the field of domestic construction. They manage...

Broadly, most businesses focus on providing their customers with either a product or a service. Established in 2015, Edibleculture is a business offering their customers both products and services. In terms of products, the business grows and sells plants including herbs, vegetables, fruit trees and...

While many traditional pubs are closing due to a decline in trade, The Paper Mill Micropub has been working hard to keep business booming. Since opening in 2013 the micropub has gone from strength-to-strength; including being named the Swale CAMRA Pub of the Year for three years in a...

Our next entrant is a franchise business employing five people. Bluebird Care (Swale) is a leading local home care and live-in care provider delivering consistently high quality care and support to customers within their own homes. Operating from offices based in Sittingbourne, the business’...

Established in March 2016, The Skin Clinic Faversham provides customers with a range of skin services including wrinkle relaxing injections, Dermal Fillers, Chemical Peels and Laser Liposuction. Headed up by Samantha Grant and Karen Garcia, the three-person strong team has developed their businesses...

Hot on the heels of winning consecutive “Customer Service and Commitment” awards at the 2015 and 2016 Swale Business Awards; William Whitmey Independent Funeral Directors has once again thrown their “top hat” into the ring for the Swale Business Awards. The small, family run...

After securing the Judges’ Special Award at the 2016 Swale Business Awards, and being selected for the 'Future list of companies changing the way live and work in Kent', Kent Science Park-based business PlantWorks are returning stronger than ever for the 2017 awards. Since winning...

When it comes to overcoming challenges within a business, few companies in Swale could compete with the difficulties faced by Beauty Spot over the last year. The Faversham-business, which provides customers with high-end beauty treatments, suffered a significant fire sixteen-months-ago. After being...

Ollie Bongo’s Pet Essentials is fast becoming a blossoming Pet ‘empire’. Since opening their first store in Faversham three years ago, entrepreneurs Kevin and Sharon Moon have begun a rapid expansion of their brand. Over the course of the last year, they have opened a second store,...

There is a saying in business that there is ‘no such thing as a problem, merely a challenge to overcome’. If this is the case then Natalie Gorman and Jill Quinn, Co-Owners of Forever have overcome a huge challenge this year! Now in their third year of business, the 1950s-style...

JM Recruitment lost their Managing Director Mike Bailey last year and have since been finding a way to drive the business forward in his absence. Mike was the major driving force within the business and his loss had a huge knock on moral within the business. He was known both as...

Operating for just over a year now, The Shisha Bar is a unique new attraction in Sheerness. The freshman business offers customers a selection of delicious cocktails, shakes and hot drinks to accompany use of a shisha pipe – an Egyptian hookah pipe that releases herbal flavours. Rajan...

Relaunched in 2016, Nim’s Fruit is producing delicious snacks right here in Swale. The 100% natural air-dried fruit and vegetable crisp producer offers a selection of sumptuous options including crisps made from apples, pears, pineapples, melons, oranges, kiwis, beetroots, carrots, parsnips,...

For a decade now, JP Stone have been manufacturing bespoke doors and joinery from their premises in Sittingbourne. The 12-strong team have been investing in new machinery to improve productivity and give customers more options. Director Julie Stone discussed the growth her company had seen over...

Our next entrant has been working with local people to help them change their lives. For the last ten years, Karen Richardson has been helping her clients to lose weight through the Cambridge Weight Plan steps, encouraging them to be healthier and fitter. Karen offers her clients six different...

The Swale Business Awards recognise businesses that make a name for themselves in our community, regardless of their size. S and J Catering Services may be small, but owner Julie Badcock’s work ethic, and the support of her family, has helped the catering business to thrive. Julie discussed...

Returning to the Swale Business Awards in 2017 is AbBaltis, the Kent Science Park-based business that last entered in 2013, when they were named Small Business of the Year. Over the last four years, AbBaltis has gone from strength-to-strength. They continue to provide disease state plasma and serum...

Entering the Swale Business Awards for the first time in 2017 is Sunnyhill Glamping, a “glamping” site based in Borden. Glamping is a portmanteau meaning “glamour camping” and allows people to experience the fun of camping but with an added element of luxury! Sarah Smith...

For over twenty –years now, D-Dee’s Day Nursery has provided individualised and quality care for children aged newborns to five-year-olds. Open from 08:00 until 18:00, 51 weeks of the year, the Nursery has cared for hundreds of children during their 21-year tenure. Proprietor and...

For almost three decades, Sota Solutions has proved IT infrastructure solutions for businesses throughout London and the South East. The Kent Science Park-based business currently has 45 employees providing a portfolio of technology solutions including Cloud, Connectivity, Colocation, Backup &...

After winning a Swale Business Award in 2013 and being a finalist at the 2016 awards, A2 Tyre Supplies have once again put themselves in the running to be Swale Business of the Year. Now in their 42nd year of trading, the company specialise in providing tyres and batteries to the general public and...

In order for a charity to be successful it needs to operate with a strong business plan, and under the leadership of Debbie Cameron, this is exactly what Fields of Life GB have. It is evident to anyone who speaks with Debbie that she exudes a passion for her work, and she has already personally...

For thirty years now, Bodylines have been providing hair, beauty and nail services to customers throughout Swale. From their base in Sittingbourne, the team of eleven have been championing their mission statement, which is “Your Choice, Our Knowledge”, which in short is the concept that...

For 26 years now, Swale Community Centres have been providing room, hall and office hire for charity, community, voluntary, statutory and commercial groups and services throughout Swale. The charitable organisation runs a youth club group for 13-17 year olds and is also a Food Bank voucher...

Now in their 29th year, Chris Browne Builders Ltd continues to be one of Swale’s most established commercial builders. The 20-strong team provides professional building services and full design and build service to commercial premises throughout Kent and the South East. Works include new build...

The Swale Business Awards recognise both new and established businesses in the area, and you would have a very tough time finding a handful of Swale businesses that are more established than Bennett Opie Ltd. The Sittingbourne-based food manufacturer and distributor has been operating in Swale for...

For 21 years now, Kent Science Park-based business Global Associates have been offering a unique and unparalleled service in the Building and Energy Management Services (BEMS) marketplace. The team of 28 have grown the business to the point where they are now one of the South East’s leading...

After winning the first ever Sittingbourne Business of the Year award last year, Gallery Direct are hoping to capture another trophy at the 2017 Swale Business Awards. Gallery Direct has been working at the heart of the Swale business community for many years, initially starting as a family run...

In 2016, AngelsLocks won the first ever Sheppey Business of the Year Award. Determined to continue to build on this success, they have once again put themselves forward for the Swale Business Awards. For four years now, the Sheerness based-company have developed a flourishing business selling...

If you don’t work in farming or agriculture, you may not have heard of Burden Bros Agri before; but the thriving business has growing significantly in the heart of Swale for over a decade now. The 68-strong company are main dealers of John Deere machinery – providing customers with a...

Specialising in balloon making for all occasions, Sittingbourne Balloons, based at the Smeed Dean Centre, has successfully been growing their customer base over the last three years. The business provides a wide range of goods including personalised banners, chair covers, wedding decorations and...

After being shortlisted as a finalist at last year’s Swale Business Awards. Queenborough Harbour Trust (QHT) are once again putting their name forward for Swale Business of the Year. Established six years ago, QHT is the main provider of leisure and recreational moorings at Queenborough on the...

For nearly two decades now, Country Brides have been a stalwart member of the Faversham business community. The specialist and designer bridalwear shop offers the complete service to brides and bridal parties, and has remained one of Kent’s go to retailers for wedding and bridesmaids’...