Lancashire businesses proudly support county’s hottest SMEs

Five of Lancashire’s leading organisations, representing a diverse range of products and services, have proudly backed this year’s Hot 100 listing of Lancashire’s most profitable SMEs.

Nelson and Colne College Group, Woodcocks Haworth and Nuttall Solicitors, PM+M Chartered Accountants, Lexus Preston and Limitless Public Relations all supported the special supplement, which featured in the July/August edition of Lancashire Business View, now available to buy in print here and view online here.

The list, which has been produced every year for more than a decade, showed significant growth throughout the county despite the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, Brexit and supply chain troubles.

Profits generated by this year’s Hot 100 stand at an impressive £290m – a 39 per cent increase year on year. The businesses featured recorded a combined turnover of £1.9bn and employ more than 11,000 people.

The list was compiled by Blackburn and Bury-based PM+M Chartered Accountants.

Dean Rodgers, accounts and advisory manager at PM+M, said: “This year’s rankings certainly reflect a mixed picture in the economy where some industries are faring better than others.

“Overall, the results indicate a positive trend for the Lancashire business community with profits increasing despite a backdrop of coronavirus uncertainties, price rises and a challenging economic environment.”

The feature was sponsored by Nelson & Colne College Group and Woodcocks Haworth & Nuttall Solicitors.

Morag Davis, assistant principal for technical education at Nelson and Colne College Group, said: “Huge congratulations go out to all the businesses who feature in this prestigious

Hot 100 list. It is indicative of just how many excellent and resilient SME businesses we have in our region.”

Michael Shroot, CEO, WHN Solicitors, said: “We are delighted to be headline sponsors of this year’s Hot 100. It is also encouraging to see the wide range of businesses that are included in this year’s list from across a breadth of sectors. This highlights the truly diverse skill set that we have in our county.”

The feature was also supported by Lexus Preston and Limitless Public Relations.

Michael Gregory, director of Limitless, said: “Lancashire has always been a hotbed of successful businesses run by people using their imagination, innovation and determination to ensure their companies navigate the challenges ahead of them. Let’s shout about what we’re good at and not hide our light under a bushel.”

The Lancashire Business View team will now host a special, invite-only event to bring together those 100 listed businesses, the magazine team and the sponsors of the feature.

Steven Halliday, Lexus business development manager, said: “We are delighted to be sponsoring the 2022 Hot 100 campaign and our team are excited to be attending the event at Mitton Hall in September. 

“We would like to say congratulations to the companies who have made it into the top 100 list, and we look forward to meeting you.”

Stephen Bolton, commercial director at Lancashire Business View, said: “The Hot 100 continues to be one of the most popular features in our magazine - and for good reason. It’s a celebration of businesses that are excelling, even in the face of immense challenges.

“We appreciate the support of these five organisations whose input makes creating this feature possible. It is a great example of what can be achieved when we all work together, including projects such as the Hot 100 which raises the profile of our county as a whole.”