Matthew Moore, CV-Library, (2nd right) collected the award from Steve Clarke, James Cowper, (right)


SME of the Year AWARD SPONSORED BY


JAMES COWPER Winner: CV-Library


Founded in 2000 from a spare room, Fleet- based CV-Library has grown into a major player in the recruitment market and boasts the UK’s largest database of CVs – currently standing at 6.7 million.


Covering over 70 industries, CV-Library is now the UK’s leading independent online job board, with clients including Hilton Hotels, Tate and Adecco, and has become one of the most trusted brands in online recruitment.


Each month it receives an average of 150,000 new registrations from job seekers throughout the UK and has 2.3 million monthly unique users. There are 14 million job searches and 1.8 million job applications every month on the website and the business has already won a number of awards.


It added to that collection when CV-Library was named as the winner of SME of the Year Award, sponsored by leading accountants and business advisers, James Cowper. To loud applause, Matthew Moore, finance director at CV-Library took to the stage to collect the trophy from Steve Clarke, managing partner of James Cowper.


The judges paid tribute to the company’s success, saying: “Working within a hugely competitive sector, our winners this year have grown from a spare room set up to become one of the most respected brands in the market.


“Exceptional growth and profitability, putting the customer at the very heart of what they do and retaining a commitment to the local


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – DECEMBER 13/JANUARY 14


community whilst building a business that competes on a national, and soon to be international scale, are just a few of the reasons for the businesses success.”


Commenting on the award, Lee Biggins, CV-Library’s founder and managing director, said: “Winning SME of the Year is phenomenal achievement for CV-Library and gives the entire team deserved recognition for the hard work that goes into CV-Library.


“We’ve seen record breaking growth in every area of the business over the past 12 months and we’re innovating and re-investing like never before. It’s so important for us to be acknowledged for our business performance and it reflects the astonishing results we're continuing to achieve.”


One of the keys to its success is the company’s dedicated client response team, responsible solely for supporting clients as opposed to making sales, and CV-Library believes this helps it stand out in the competitive marketplace.


It has also been working hard to allow users to interact via mobile devices, developing a mobile app to allow candidates to search and apply, and has integrated social media functionality across sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.


Biggins was described in its winning entry as very “hands-on, passionate and determined”, always looking for new ideas and inspiring others to share their ideas. Growing up in Fleet, he has a policy of recognising the community’s


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talent pool, enabling the business to stick to its local roots, giving employees a great worklife balance and short commuting times. He also regularly visits his old school to encourage and motivate local youngsters.


CV-Library has achieved consistent year-on-year growth, with a 29% increase in turnover from 2012-2013 and it regularly sets industry records.


Future expansion plans include the launch of a global strategy with a focus on the US and Asia, as well as increasing its market share in the UK with investment in marketing to increase brand and product awareness.


In second place was ScentAir, the UK’s leading scent marketing business, which supplies some of the world’s leading fashion, retail and hospitality brands. In third was STL Communications, a provider of business telephone solutions and broadband to companies across the south.


Highly Commended were Navtech Radar, Volume and Polythene UK.


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