A fast-growing sports equipment retailer has received a New Year boost after being shortlisted for a pair of prizes at a national business awards.

Wrexham-based Net World Sports has been shortlisted for ‘Scale Up Business of the Year’ and ‘Business Exporter of the Year’ at the upcoming FSB Wales Celebrating Small Business Awards 2018.

The awards, which are organised by the long-standing and influential UK-wide business support organisation the Federation of Small Businesses, aim to celebrate the successes of Britain’s 5.5 million small and medium-sized companies.

Net World Sports, which is the UK’s biggest-selling football goal manufacturer supplying more than 100,000 of its FORZA goals a year worldwide, reached the finals of the ‘Scale Up Business of the Year’ category after impressing judges with annual sales growth of 70% over the qualifying period, with the firm’s average profits growing even quicker during the same timescale.

The company’s continuing international sales success has also been rewarded with a place on the shortlist for the ‘Business Exporter of the Year’ prize.

Overseas sales accounted for more than half of Net World Sports’ revenues in the eligible period, and in the last 12 months alone it has supplied top quality, affordable sports equipment to customers in more than 100 countries, all dispatched from its single 120,000 square foot HQ on Wrexham Industrial Estate.

Alex Lovén, managing director for Net World Sports, said: “Being shortlisted for these two national awards is an extremely positive start to the year and more well-deserved recognition for our team’s outstanding work and successes in 2017.

“But there’ll be no easing off the accelerator pedal in 2018, it’s very much full speed ahead with our ambitious plans to achieve even bigger and better things.

“We’re getting set to launch several fantastic new products across ranges as diverse as football, tennis, hockey, rugby, and fitness equipment. While since Christmas we’ve already welcomed six new members to our team, and are currently hiring for plenty more new faces to join us in a variety of roles.”

Congratulating the companies shortlisted for the FSB Celebrating Small Business Awards, Dave Stallon, commercial and operations director for the FSB, said: “SMEs are a vital part of the UK. 99.9 per cent of all private sector businesses are SMEs, providing 60 per cent of private sector jobs and having a combined annual turnover of £1.8 trillion.

“The past year has been one of the most challenging the small business sector has ever faced and the FSB Celebrating Small Business Awards will recognise and celebrate that.”

Next month the sports supplier will go head-to-head with other finalists in the Wales awards ceremony held at the Mercure Holland House Hotel in Cardiff on Tuesday, February 6.

If the firm emerges victorious in either of the two categories, Net World Sports will progress to the overall UK final in London at the start of May..

The double awards shortlisting is the latest in a string of such success for Net World Sports, which is the only UK business to currently appear in all three of the most recent Sunday Times Fast Track 100 league tables ranking sales, profitability, and exports.

The firm also won the ‘Best SME’ category at the UK Business Awards 2017 at Wembley Stadium, ‘International Trading Business of the Year’ at the North Wales Business Leaders Awards 2017, and claimed ‘Exporter of the Year’ at the Daily Post Business Awards 2017.

In March, the Wrexham retailer will also go up against companies including clothing brand ASOS and electrical goods specialist AO.com as a finalist in the ‘International Growth Retailer of the Year’ prize at industry ‘Oscars’ the Retail Week Awards 2018.

BLOB Founded in 2009, Net World Sports is a fast-growing online sports equipment retailer supplying an expanding range of products to customers worldwide. Headquartered at a 120,000 square foot base in Wrexham, the company is the only UK business to currently appear in all three of the most recent Sunday Times Fast Track 100 league tables ranking sales, profitability, and export figures while it also features on the Wales Fast Growth 50 list for 2017. It won the ‘SME – Incorporated for less than 10 years’ category of the UK Business Awards 2017 and the ‘International Trading Business of the Year’ crown at the inaugural North Wales Business Leaders Awards 2017, and is a finalist at the Retail Week Awards 2018.