Congratulations to the winner of Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2023 Tendring4Growth Business awards!
Backing Essex Business is thrilled to announce the winner of our sponsored award, ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ at the 2023 Tendring4Growth Business Awards – Caroline Lindsay of the Horse Saddle Rider Lab!
The Tendring4Growth Business Awards, held annually, follow a string of webinars, networking events, and skills fairs in the district as part of the Tendring4Growth Business Fortnight – an event that aims to highlight and celebrate the business leaders, entrepreneurs, stakeholders and members of the community who are making a real difference to the district.
The Business Awards, with this years’ headline sponsor Colbea, celebrated the variety of business owners and enterprises in the community, with a range of award categories on offer to ensure entrepreneurs from across the district could be put forward. The awards ceremony, held in the Princes Theatre on the evening of 5th October 2023, was a fantastic evening with an opportunity to network, celebrate local business, as well as be entertained by local performers like Jamie Timms and Clacton Community Theatre group performing ‘Oliver!’.
The ’Entrepreneur of the Year’ category, sponsored by Backing Essex Business, was created to recognise an entrepreneur or business person who has paved the way starting a new business or significantly contributed to the growth and running of an existing one. After receiving a number of impressive nominations for the award, the team at Backing Essex Business and the board of the Tendring4Growth Business Awards created a shortlist to narrow down the entries, before landing on the final winner.
Presented by Business Advisor Patrick Maynard from Backing Essex Business, the 2023 Entrepreneur of the Year award was presented to Caroline Lindsay of Harwich-based business the Horse Saddle Rider Lab. Established after decades in the sector, Caroline has grown the business substantially; navigating the difficulties of lockdowns and the pandemic to become a leader teacher and expert in equine therapy and veterinary physiotherapy in her sector, and more recently taking her training online to reach even more equine therapists.
Credit: Steve Brading
To the judges, Caroline’s entrepreneurial spirit shone through her nomination – with her ability to adapt to the changing landscape and technology in her sector having a large positive impact on her sector not just in the Tendring district, but worldwide too.
In her nomination, Caroline said:
“I have adapted to change, found new opportunities and innovated to create new streams of revenue. Lock-down gave me the chance to prove to myself that I could be so incredibly resourceful that not even a pandemic could stop me in my entrepreneurial tracks to transform my business.” – Caroline Lindsay, founder of The Horse Saddle Rider Lab
With Horse Saddle Rider Lab taking the first prize, some other nominees were also shortlisted for the award – recognising their contribution and achievements as entrepreneurs in the community.
The ‘Highly Commended’ and runners up were:
· RUNNER UP 2023: Mark Baines of Thorrington Mill Vineyard
· HIGHLY COMMENDED 2023: Callum Lamb of Lamb & Co
· HIGHLY COMMENDED 2023: Rachael Richards of Uniform7
Credit: Steve Brading
