Managing director Yvonne Gorman was named on the 2019 shortlist of the Great British Entrepreneur Awards on 18 July after undergoing a rigorous application process to win a nomination. She is competing for Midlands small business entrepreneur of the year.

The nod comes as Derby-based print manager Essential bounces back from a challenging June, with Gorman saying that July had been a “stonking” month for the business.

She said: “A slow June knocked our confidence a bit, we have managed to keep in line with targets and worked hard to add new work by forging new relationships. We had our year-end in April, and we remain debt-free and heading in the right direction.

“This is the first award I have ever submitted for and it took me about 10 hours in total to work through the full application. I had to evaluate the entire business and it was a really therapeutic exercise that allowed me to take stock of where we are now.

“It was a wake-up call to the fact we do a good job within our community on voluntary, non-profit and charity work adding value left, right and centre. We are now being proactive with our marketing and showing clients the effectiveness of print, which has worked well.”

Gorman said that the company would go forward by looking to add an apprentice or intern to its four-person headcount by working with a local university to find suitable candidates.

Further plans on the cards are likely to include more investment in working with freelancers, as well as the potential to bring some work in-house by taking on machinery.

The Great British Entrepreneur Awards will announce its Midlands winners on 25 September at the Arcadian in Birmingham.