Bridgnorth businesswomen up for awards over work during coronavirus crisis

Christine Brown, who runs AMD Promotions with her husband Julian, and Sally Themans, of Bridgnorth-based business consultancy firm Good2Great, have been shortlisted in Shropshire Chamber of Commerce's Chamber Champion Awards 2020.

Christine, who helps run the design, print, embroidery and promotion shop in Lasyard House, is in the running for the competition's Charity Champions category.

She said: "“Lockdown has been tough on small businesses like ourselves but we were determined to continue supporting our local community and in particular local charities who were struggling to raise funds during the crisis.

“We support lots of good causes through donations, fundraising and sponsorship but when Covid-19 hit we felt it was even more important to dig deep. We thought about what we could do practically to help them raise money quickly during lockdown. Many small charities were losing fundraising income through closure of shops and cancelled events and weren’t eligible for support grants.

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“With a stock room full of T-shirts and quieter than usual embroidery machines, our T-shirt fundraiser was born, and we sold individually designed garments in aid of Bridgnorth Hospital and Shropshire Cat Rescue, with every penny going to the charities, raising around £1,000 in total.

“We’re delighted to be recognised for our work with local charities through the chamber awards but more importantly by being a finalist we have the opportunity to spread the word that our small local charities need us more than ever.”

Sally has been shortlisted in the Valiant Volunteer category of the awards, which recognise businesses and individuals who went above and beyond during the coronavirus lockdown.

The category celebrates people who are generous with their time to support a group and inspire others showing initiative, commitment and creativity.

Sally has been nominated for her extensive work with Love Bridgnorth, a campaign to promote and support the town, which has helped to keep the community supported and connected throughout the Covid-19 crisis by using social media channels with a combined audience of more than 16,400.

She devised a Let's Get Local campaign – encouraging people to use local businesses to keep the economy going – and has kept people informed of which businesses are open and providing delivery, through a directory. The site also posted positive stories and videos highlighting generous and charitable deeds of townsfolk.

Love Bridgnorth, which launched in 2015 and was one of the driving forces behind the town winning the ‘Best British High Street’ accolade four years ago, also aided the business community with grants and government guidance for safe reopening.

Sally, who has a career in retail operations and management spanning 30 years and now works with her husband Johnny at Good2Great, said: “I am delighted to be shortlisted for one of these prestigious Shropshire Chamber of Commerce awards. It's a great way to put Bridgnorth and our great community spirit on the map.”