Entrepreneur Michelle Bartleet-Greavey, founder of Baa Stools MICHELLE Bartleet-Greavey could have put her business success down to chance - after being inspired by a fortune teller who said to pursue upholstery as a vocation, but rather she credits her location - Denbighshire. She d taken redundancy from a large recruitment firm, working in London and Manchester with blue chip companies, and returned to North Wales, where she enrolled on an upholstery course just over the border in Cheshire. Fate has since combined with hard work, to turn he business Baa Stool - that started on her kitchen table into one that turns over £400,000 a year, employs three full-time staff and exports to America.
Rural Youth Ideas festival IN RECOGNITION of its work inspiring and developing the next generation of rural leaders, the Rural Youth Project has been awarded runner-up in the ‘Best Rural Social Enterprise, Charity or Community Project’ category at this year’s Rural Business Awards. The awards ceremony, which was held virtually, brought together a broad range of businesses, social enterprises and charities operating across the UK to celebrate their successes and the important contribution they make to the nation’s rural economy. Co-founder and director of the Rural Youth Project, Rebecca Dawes, said that the team was thrilled to be recognised: “This year, there were a record number of entries and we were aware that it was a very competitive process, so we were initially thrilled to be shortlisted alongside the other fantastic organisations in our category. To be awarded runner-up at the Rural Business Awards was not only a fantastic achievement for the team and a ma
A FLINTSHIRE company has been named one of the best businesses in rural Britain after winning an Amazon-backed Rural Business Award. The Leader reported in November how the Accessible Holiday Escapes website had been shortlisted in the Best Rural Start-Up Business category of the 2020/2021 Rural Business Awards, held in partnership with Amazon. It has now been confirmed the business - which helps guests with disabilities find quality accommodation to suits their needs - won that category. The business was started by husband-and-wife team Becky and Phil Hamilton. Mr and Mrs Hamilton love having holidays and days out, but often found it difficult to find accommodation that suited the needs of their eight-year-old daughter, who has a rare metabolic disorder called CDG Type 2, and their 13-year-old son.
How deer safaris for tourists have helped this Northumberland farm gain national recognition
A Northumberland farm has received national recognition after reintroducing red deer and running unique safari tours for visitors.
Tuesday, 16th March 2021, 5:09 pm
Ingram Valley Farm has been named runner-up in the best rural diversification project category at this year’s Rural Business Awards.
The farm, run by Rebecca Wilson alongside her husband Ross and father-in-law Johnny, reintroduced red deer to the valley in 2019, where they first roamed 10,000 years ago.
They invested in new handling facilities and now have more than 150 red deer on the farm, as well as 1,400 sheep, 1,500 prime lambs and 100 cattle.