Alistair Smit in the final 5 for The Duke of York New Entrepreneur of the Year Award

Five finalists have been announced for the Duke of York New Entrepreneur of the Year Award. They are: Emma Cerrone of Free:Formers; Alistair Smit of The Magic Thermodynamic Box; Ben Weaver of Outlook Publishing Ltd; Kathryn Birch of Translive Global; and Jay Radia of Yieldify. They now face a public vote to help decide the overall winner, who will be announced at a ceremony at Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane, on November 11, 2014. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) July 11, 2014 - The finalists were decided after a total of ten National Business Awards semi-finalists pitched their business to a live audience and a panel of judges at Liverpool's St George's Hall on June 24, 2014.

Each semi-finalist had to present a three-minute pitch on their business model, key achievements and elements underpinning future growth. The judging panel - which included Ed Wray, co-founder of Betfair; Charmaine Eggberry, former Wayra director and CEO of Plan B Consulting; Thea Green, nails inc founder; Guy Rigby, head of entrepreneur services at Smith & Williamson; and Simon Burckhardt, managing director of Vonage UK - commented on the exceptional talent and future prospects of the finalists. They focused on the market opportunity identified, the model to capitalise on it and how it has been executed within the first 18 months of trading. Now in its 13th year, the National Business Awards celebrates enterprise excellence and is open to any company within the UK, whether public, private or third sector, to find the UK's most promising new entrepreneurs.

Speaking at the event, HRH The Duke of York revealed his commitment to supporting initiatives that accelerate, amplify and reward entrepreneurial skills.

HRH The Duke of York said: "If we're going to employ people we're going to have to be more entrepreneurial. We're going to have to find ways of encouraging young people or people who are in businesses, who see a niche in the market, to get out there and start their own business. What's very interesting listening to each of the semi-finalists, has been the fact that you've all come from different backgrounds, you've all had different experiences and you're all setting off down a path, not only to be a business in its own right, but that you want to grow quickly. If there's one thing that can make a difference to prosperity in the UK it's high growth, fast growth businesses. Listening to these people shows that we're on the right track."

Alex Evans, programme director for the National Business Awards said: "The courage and conviction of these new entrepreneurs really came through in their pitches. What they all had in common was a purpose beyond profit - with personal values embedded in their business models."

Vonage, a leading provider of internet telephony for small businesses, has partnered with the National Business Awards to find and recognise the best first-time business founders. They will now provide each finalist with access to their products and services to help them continue to grow their business.

Simon Burckhardt, Vonage UK's managing director said; "Entrepreneurs are the backbone of this economy. They are an example of the innovation, creativity and passion that exists in the UK business community. While we may have selected five finalists, the competition was tough, not unlike the current business environment."

The ten semi-finalists benefited from face-to-face presentation coaching to hone their three-minute pitch - provided by Beermat Entrepreneur author Mike Southon, who designed the '5 P Elevator Pitch' to focus on pain, premise, people, proof, and purpose. All registered attendees used a new web-based networking app, provided by Iwaz.at, to connect before, during and after the event. The audience was able to pose questions, vote and poll throughout the event using sli.do.

Recognising enterprise excellence, innovation and ethics, the National Business Awards will celebrate a range of achievements through 17 categories - and the winners will be revealed on November 11, 2014.

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