Entrepreneurs who have faced adversity and transformed their lives by starting a business were celebrated at a glittering ceremony this week.

Among the winners of the 2008 Barclays Trading Places Awards, which took place at London’s Marriott Hotel in Grosvenor Square and was hosted by TV presenter Loraine Kelly, were Kevin and Nikki Crewes-Sweet of Toloja Orchards, who were awarded a £10,000 prize.

The pair set up their cider, juice and Perry business in 2005 after they had faced several redundancies, a burglary, illness, and the loss of their home.

Runner-up Paul Fleming’s gardening business, Inside Out, received a £5,000 award, while all of the top 10 national finalists were awarded £1,100 worth of desktop software by Microsoft.

Judges for the awards included Big Issue founder and editor-in-chief John Bird, as well as The Sun’s business editor Ian King, and Sophie Beesley of The Prince’s Trust. Judges said the quality of entries was ‘outstanding’.

John Davis, marketing director of Barclays Local Business and a judge on the panel, said the awards are designed to celebrate unsung heroes from across the country whose ‘amazing achievements’ often go unnoticed.

“These people have overcome tremendous personal adversity to positively change their lives by starting their own business,” he said.

“We congratulate all our finalists on their success in the 2008 awards, and hope the national recognition of their story will inspire other budding entrepreneurs.”

© Crimson Business Ltd. 2008