THE SEARCH is on for the best small business in Reading East, ahead of this year’s Small Business Saturday.
MP Matt Rodda is asking his constituents to let him know who deserved to be awarded the title, be it a one-man band or one that makes a difference with a number of employees.
Categories open include the hospitality sector, clothing, wellbeing, home, hobbies, pets and services. The only criteria is that they are based within the Reading East area.
Nominations are open right up until noon on Friday, December 3, with the winner being announced on Small Business Saturday – December 4.
The day is a grassroots campaign that wants people to shop local and support small businesses in the community. Many Reading businesses take part.
This year, there will be the extra sparkle caused by Mr Rodda’s awards.
He told Reading Today they were an important way of letting Reading folk show their support for smaller businesses after the pandemic, with many facing disruptions caused by rising costs, inflation and supply chain problems.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and our communities,” he said. “They create jobs and provide vital services to local people.
“The pandemic has caused real and lasting difficulty for many of them. I want to give them a helping hand by shining a light on their contribution by running a competition to find the best local businesses in our area.”
He said that inviting people to nominate businesses was important as it meant the pool to judge would be “as wide as possible”, and that so far there had been a good response.
“Personal experience matters,” he added. “This is an opportunity to talk about people who have done a great job, often in difficult circumstances. It’s something to celebrate what’s going on.
“We should celebrate the whole small business sector.”
He added: “I want to try and make this as interactive as we possibly can, to try and make easy for people to get involved.”
To this end, Mr Rodda has set up a special nomination form on his website, and will be posting regular updates on social media so people can see what is going on.
The nomination form gives people a chance to explain why the small business should be considered to be given the Small Business award.
Some of the inspiration for the contest came from Mr Rodda’s role as shadow minister for pensions. He said that he had been to a number of conferences where he had learnt more about the sector.
“It’s been really interesting to discuss with businesses all the time, it gives some perspective,” he said.
To take part, log on to mattroddamp.com/2021-sbsat
