Entrepreneur of the year

Winner
SmartNewHomes.com
This internet business has been a smash hit with the housebuilding industry and simply had to win this category. Three years ago, the new homes marketing was stuck in a rut. Enter former Redrow marketing director David Bexon, who turned it around with the launched SmartNewHomes.com. This website offers new homebuyers a way to browse a range of developments from more than 80 housebuilders. The service makes it much easier for its 400,000 users to buy homes, and has dramatically increased the levels of pre-reservation customer service from across the entire industry. Now, in the face of fierce competition, SmartNewHomes has established itself as a recognisable brand that is independent of any housebuilders. This independence translates into its finances, too – success has equalled big profits and no financial backer has been taken on. A great example of a challenge to the status quo that's earned financial rewards and industry acclaim.

'The single most efficient supplier we use by far'

RUNNERS-UP
Cadweb
Last year's fourth place in this category, online design collaboration tool Cadweb has since boosted its profit an impressive 20%. Also in the past year, the nine-year-old company has doubled its file count to a staggering 2 million – a growth rate of which Cadweb is justly proud. And the custom is still flowing in. The firm has a full order book for next year and is already at 75% order capacity for the year after, with involvement in projects that stretch 20 years into the future. Employees must be pretty chuffed that Cadweb has stuck to its guns by never taking on any external funding and remaining 100% employee-owned. But it is not all about commercial success; the paper saved by online sharing of CAD images has saved 140 football pitches' worth of paper. A trivial statistic maybe, but not to be sniffed at when 1320 trees have been saved. And clients will vouch for the time savings too – which, let's face it, is what keeps those customers knocking at Cadweb's door.

'I didn't appreciate how easy it had been to find something on Cadweb until it was switched off and I had to revert to the filed copies'

Consort Homes
The deserving final spot in the top three goes to this Leeds-based housebuilder, on the strength of commercial success alone – and indeed why not? The same age as these awards, Consort is now in its 10th year and enjoying more sales than ever, with turnover last year hitting £19.1m, more than double that of 2001. But the real success story is that of managing director Darren Stubbs. Thrust into his role in 1993 at the remarkably tender age of 25, Darren transformed the company from its previous incarnation as Consortium, turned sales and profitability around, created a dynamic company website that provides online customer care and has taken the firm into the 21st century. Today, Consort developments are springing up all over Yorkshire with some big ones in the pipeline.

'Year on year the company continues to increase revenue and profit'