THE Hunts Post Huntingdonshire Business Awards could look very different in future, as the organisers look to make them a year-round celebration of business success, rather than just an annual showcase. Awards chairman Paul Richardson, a former editor of

THE Hunts Post Huntingdonshire Business Awards could look very different in future, as the organisers look to make them a year-round celebration of business success, rather than just an annual showcase.

Awards chairman Paul Richardson, a former editor of The Hunts Post and now publisher of all parent group Archant's Cambridgeshire titles, is set to open discussions with sponsors and judges on the best way to broaden the scope of the awards.

"A decade ago, Huntingdonshire's business community did not exist. Now, thanks partly to the exposure these awards provide, it clearly does," he said at last night's awards ceremony.

"With that in mind, The Hunts Post launched its weekly Business Page, unique among weekly papers in Cambridgeshire, because, as the newspaper of record for the area, we wanted to capture what was going on, to continue to illuminate the outstanding businesses and business people we have around us and the look for the influences that are likely to affect businesses in Huntingdonshire going forward.

"Looking to that future, I hope to use these awards and the Business Page to move things on. Tonight was very much a sell-out, which means we had to disappoint nearly 100 people who wanted to be here. That suggests to me that there is an appetite for celebrating business success in a way that combines a quality experience with the opportunity for networking in a positive environment.

"And it underlines what the organisers and sponsors of these awards have been thinking about for some time - about moving on from simply an annual competition.

"Together with business leaders, we want to find ways of celebrating Huntingdonshire's business successes all year round and provide opportunities for more companies and more people to be involved.