Kirklees Top 100 companies to be unveiled

A joint initiative to celebrate business success in Kirklees and put local companies in the spotlight will launch in October, as the top 100 companies in the district are set to be unveiled.

Aimed to strengthen bonds within the Kirklees business community, the ‘Kirklees Top 100’ is a joint venture between University of Huddersfield, Kirklees Council, the Huddersfield Examiner, and the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3M BIC). It will help raise the profile of Kirklees’ businesses and the district as an attractive destination for inward investment, business start-up, scale-up and growth.

The Kirklees Top 100 is based on the York Top 100 model created by Make It York in association with the York Business School. The Kirklees list is determined by a set of consistent metrics, using a combination of turnover, profit, employee numbers and growth, all derived from published company accounts of locally registered firms.

The top 100 businesses in the district will be unveiled at a virtual event on Thursday 8 October, hosted by the four partner organisations.

Councillor Shabir Pandor, Leader, Kirklees Council, said: “The council remains committed to the economic recovery of Kirklees, and to working with our local business community. We will support them to adapt to new ways of working, and together identify and create opportunities for growth and employment across Kirklees.

“Initiatives like the Kirklees Top 100 help put local businesses in the spotlight and attract new investment for businesses, infrastructure, and innovation."

University's local links are vital

Professor Bob Cryan, CBE, vice chancellor of the University of Huddersfield, said: “Collaboration and the benefits of businesses and public sector institutions working closely together has always played an important part of our ethos at the University of Huddersfield, and we continue to support and work with local companies.

“The Kirklees Top 100 will help accelerate innovation in areas of traditional strengths such as textiles and create added value in newer sectors. It will help us to respond even more closely to the needs of industry, whether we are sharing the expertise of our world-class academics or helping with the development and mentoring of entrepreneurs and managers.”

3M Buckley Innovation Centre’s CEO, Sue Cooke, the driving force behind the initiative, said: “The Kirklees Top 100 is an opportunity to strengthen the business community in Kirklees. Co-ordinating the efforts of the major anchor institutions will help develop stronger relationships with the top 100 companies, ensuring they play a part in the future of the Kirklees economy and foster local talent, education and skills initiatives, innovation and business support, and other appropriate initiatives.

“We hope that the Kirklees Top 100 list will be an annual event and unveiled every Autumn to celebrate the achievements of the district’s thriving business community.”

The event and brochure, which will be available online on Yorkshire Business Live and in glossy format from all four partner organisations from 8 October, have been generously sponsored by CityFibre, that is investing in the installation of fibre connectivity across Kirklees.

Steve Moore, City Manager, CityFibre, said: “We are proud to be associated with the Top 100 Companies initiative in view of our strong local relationships and commitment to investing heavily in connectivity across Kirklees.”

The exclusive, invite-only event will take place on 8 October, where the top 100 businesses in Kirklees will be announced, alongside the ‘ones to watch’ and notable others, such as larger companies based in Kirklees but not registered there.

For more information about the Kirklees Top 100 Companies follow @KirkleesTop100 on Twitter and Kirklees Top 100 on LinkedIn.