LAST week saw the launch of the 2015 Dorset Business Awards at the stunning Kingston Country Courtyard in Swanage.

The sun was out as the sponsors and 120 guests gathered for a fantastic event as we launched the 21st awards.

Working with our sponsors and partners, the Dorset Business Awards is the largest celebration of businesses in Dorset, something Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry is very proud of.

This year, we are following a Hollywood theme with Stars of Dorset Business. I was delighted to welcome the Deputy Lieutenant for Dorset, the mayor of Bournemouth, deputy mayor of Poole, our sponsors and guests as we announced the categories for this year and formally declared the 2015 awards open.

Underneath the fun of the awards is the serious business of promoting the fantastic businesses we have across Dorset and celebrating our entrepreneurial success as a county. We have an incredibly diverse range of businesses across Dorset, across a wide range of industries. Too often Dorset can be seen as a holiday resort for elderly folk or a largely quiet rural county. The reality is we have a vibrant and buzzing economy and are home to many incredible businesses – and we need to shout more loudly about this. The Dorset Business Awards is a great celebration of these businesses and the owners and employees with them.

The Dorset Business Awards deliberately have a broad range of categories to enable all sorts of businesses to get involved. We seek to celebrate all aspects of business, covering areas such as business growth, exporting, entrepreneurism, teamwork, community engagement, customer service and innovation. This year we are also delighted to announce a new category celebrating business engagement with education.

The Dorset Business Awards offer businesses a real opportunity to be publicly recognised for the great work they do. It offers businesses fantastic PR opportunities as well as being a great exercise to help you look at your business. This year will see the biggest ever Awards and the gala dinner will see over 800 people come together. to recognise the Stars of Dorset Business. The awards are now open and free to enter – we look forward to hearing from you!

IAN GIRLING, chief executive, Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry