Jenny Yule and Furnware triumph

PORSE managing director Jenny Yule added another business accolade to her CV in winning the Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year award last night.

More than 650 people attended last night's Westpac Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce Business Awards at the Hawke's Bay Opera House.

PORSE is New Zealand's leading in-home childcare service, with 39.7 per cent market share, with more than 7000 children enrolled through its 41-branch network.



The judges' citation last night said: "An inspirational and persuasive leader, Jenny is dedicated to her vision and mission and belief that societies benefit when babies are raised in stable home environments during the critical stages of early brain development."

Ms Yule said she was proud to accept the award "on behalf of all our babies out there in New Zealand".

She was a finalist in the Veuve Clicquot New Zealand Business Woman Awards last year, a winner of the Her Business Most Outstanding Business Leader in 2008 and Business Woman of the Year. In 2003, the Franchise Association of New Zealand awarded her a National Business Leadership Award.

Chamber CEO Murray Douglas told Hawke's Bay Today the statement that the judges found it difficult to pick winners was no empty cliche. He said at one stage there was talk of engaging him to help. "My contribution was to say, you really need to make a decision."

Rick Cranswick, awards judge and chief executive of accounting firm WHK, said 2011 saw the strongest awards field for years, with many firms experiencing growth in "difficult times". "Most importantly there was the glass half full attitude," he said.

"I can't emphasise enough that those business who spend the time with a plan seem to be the finest achievers, have the happiest people who show the least signs of stress in this environment and are most financially successful."

Other winners in the general categories to go on as finalists in the supreme award included clothing label Kilt (Unison Small Business Award); Bay Tours and Charters Ltd (Barnes Mossman Small or Emerging Business Award) and Printstock Products Ltd (Newstalk ZB Medium-Large Business Award.

Past supreme award winner 3R won the Xplore Online Award, which was one of five special categories.

Other special categories winners included Martin Beveridge Ltd (Te Puni Kokiri Maori Business Excellence Award); Napier Family Centre (EIT Not for Profit Business Award); Origin Earth Ltd - which has been in business for less than one year - (Hawke's Bay Regional Council Business Innovation Award) and Unison Networks (Watties Workfit Healthy Workplace Award).