Dragons’ Den star and entrepreneur Levi Roots has been offering business advice to the owners of a Derby artisan bakery after Lloyds Bank named it a Small Business of 2020.
Project D was one of 900 businesses across the UK nominated for the national award which celebrates small businesses which have shown inspiring energy and resilience in the last 12 months.
The company, which makes handcrafted doughnuts, grew its annual turnover by 300% last year after pivoting the business to an online model in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Its success impressed judges who named Project D as one of its 24 winners, lining up a mentoring session with Levi Roots, creator of Reggae Reggae Sauce and a Caribbean food and drink empire estimated to be worth £35m.
Project D’s co-owners (from left to right): Matthew Bond, Max Poynton and Jacob Watts are immensely proud to be named Small Business of 2020 by Lloyds Bank.
Max Poynton, one of Project D’s directors, said: “We had no idea we had been nominated for this award, so it was a complete surprise to find out we were winners.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect from the mentoring session with Levi Roots, but it was really useful. He talked about a lot of things we already do, but it was nice to have those things reinforced by someone who obviously knows what he’s talking about.
“He told us to spend more time in the boardroom than in the bakery and to remember that passion will always shine through.
“I was a bit disappointed that he didn’t get his guitar out, but joking aside, he talked to us about how to scale the company and what we can do to improve our business model in general.”
Project D, which has recently moved into a significantly bigger 11,000 square foot bakery in Spondon, is working round-the-clock to keep up with the rapidly increasing customer demand, while also ensuring that every doughnut is freshly baked.
The company has opened a distribution centre in Leeds to help serve customers in the north of the UK and has set its sights on conquering the London market, with ambitions to open a shop in the heart of the city when footfall returns to the capital.
Gareth Oakley, Managing Director of Business Banking at Lloyds Banking Group said: “Project D epitomises the spirit and determination that we’ve seen from a legion of small businesses right across the country, who have met – and overcome – the extraordinary challenges of 2020.
“These awards recognise the significant advancements made by fledging firms in the most unpredictable and tumultuous of markets and also shine a spotlight on the heart-warming contributions they’ve made to their local communities. In so many cases, their products have brought smiles to the faces of others, when it was most needed.”
ENDS
For further information please contact Sarah Newton at Penguin PR on 07974 502 764 or email sarah@penguinpr.co.uk
