NetDespatch wins Buckinghamshire Business Innovation award
13 June 2006

Marlow based IT company NetDespatch (www.netdespatch.com) has been chosen as the top business for innovation in Buckinghamshire. NetDespatch won the prestigious award at the inaugural Buckinghamshire Ambassadors Awards; an event co-ordinated by Buckinghamshire County Council to raise the profile of Buckinghamshire and promote economic growth in the County.

NetDespatch was awarded first prize in the Innovation section sponsored by the Regional Development Agency and Aylesbury Vale Enterprise Hub. To satisfy the judges, the winner, NetDespatch, and runner up, Eventricity, had to show what had been done in the last twelve months to transform the business, and demonstrate the kind of products and services that were making a difference to customers. Originality and creativity were very important, along with evidence of new business thinking and improved organisation and financial performance.

NetDespatch has been a pioneer in the development of Internet software services to the transport industry with customers as far a field as Australia and America. The company's web based customer service and communication solutions are especially popular with express parcel carriers and couriers. They achieve major customer service and operational benefits from using the 'on demand' web services that allow their customers to book and track shipments in real time via the web.

The judges were also impressed with the recent development of 'Velocity Unwired' that for the first time allows parcel collections to be quoted for, booked and then tracked to point of delivery, using a mobile device.

NetDespatch is currently targeting major express delivery companies and their existing customers across the UK and Europe as part of an expansion programme. Becky Clark, Chief Executive of NetDespatch said. "We are delighted to have been involved in the inaugural Buckinghamshire Ambassadors Awards; we were most impressed at the high quality of both the entries and the awards event itself. With competition from major companies such as Dreams plc and GE Health, being chosen as the winner of the Innovation Award was the icing on the cake!"

"When an award like this is first launched, you never know how much interest it will generate, but we were very encouraged by the number and strength of the entries that were submitted. We think the quality of ideas coming out of Buckinghamshire stands comparison with anywhere in the South East, and the number of start-ups in the county reflects shows what a good place this is to do business," said Enterprise Hub Director Martin Brassell