Boutique hotel & restaurant The Belfry (pictured below) in Devon, and The Pheasant Inn pub & restaurant (see the team pictured above) in Cumbria have made the finals of a national competition to find Britain’s friendliest business. The businesses beat some stiff competition from other UK companies to become one of 20 finalists in the award sponsored by Liberis, one of the UK’s largest providers of small business funding. The winner will be crowned ‘Britain’s Friendliest Business’ and its owners will receive a cash award of £10,000.
The Belfry
The Belfry in Yarcombe, run by husband and wife team Neil and Sarah Jane Martin, impressed the judges with its strong entry making the case as to why it should win the award. The Belfry source as much food as possible from local suppliers in the South West, supporting local businesses and hosting regular events for locals as well as guests, including weekly coffee mornings and a monthly Knit and Natter group. The judges particularly liked the company’s customer ethos – “We provide a friendly welcome whether it is local guests here for dinner or those here for several nights – every single one is important to us. It is wonderful to provide a place for our locals to visit and catch up with each other over coffee or a meal.”
The Pheasant
The Pheasant Inn in Allithwaite, Cumbria is run by the Jones family. They impressed the judges with their customer and community approach. The Inn hosts regular darts and quiz nights for locals, organises and prepares Meals on Wheels twice a week, hosts two Age Concern lunches every month and raises money for the local netball team. They’ll even give their holidaying guests a lift back to their accommodation if they can’t get a taxi.
Facebook Likes needed
Each finalist now has to get as many Facebook Likes as possible as part of the final stage of the competition. The number of Likes received will be considered by the judges when they make their final decision on the winner. Support the businesses on Twitter @LiberisUK using the hashtag #BFBiz and on Facebook at facebook.com/BritainsFriendliestBiz.
The winner and two runners up of Britain’s Friendliest Business competition will be announced at the end of February.
Liberis launched the competition to reward hard working small businesses who think of their customers first, based on the Liberis mission to provide business-friendly finance to small businesses – many of whom are struggling in the current tight credit environment. The company has provided over £60 million of funding to help small and medium sized businesses grow.
Liberis is the UK’s largest provider of cash advances for small businesses, a refreshingly simple alternative to traditional finance.
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