SANDRINE Wyatt-Gonord is a shrewd and passionate businesswoman who, in a short time, has built a thriving online boutique. The busy mother-of-two launched The Nautical Company from her Basingstoke home two years ago.

Fully appreciating the positive exposure that business awards can offer, it was the second time Sandrine has entered INSPIRE – and she was jolly glad to have done so as she picked up the New Business of the Year Award.

“This is recognition of two years of hard work, showing that a full-time mum can create a business from nothing and get it to a standard that has real potential for the future,” said the ecstatic businesswoman.

And she is confident that the coveted award will help her business ambitions.

She said: “This will absolutely help The Nautical Company as I’ll be able to show this to potential investors. I want the business to go to a level where I can grow it to a new well-known brand, not just for the UK but around the world because I sell internationally as well.

“I have got a vision and this is a milestone that will hopefully help to get to the position I have in mind.”

Sandrine has used her expert inside knowledge of French suppliers to develop her business which can be scaled up and diversified.

Impressed with the acumen of this charming entrepreneur, judge Lisa Seal, who is a project manager at creative design and web agency theESCAPE, said she found Sandrine very inspirational, and she has no doubts the enthusiastic entrepreneur will succeed.

“I think Sandrine stood out head and shoulders above the other entrants,” said Lisa. “And it was really Sandrine’s passion that came across with her vision.

“She has put all the right building blocks in the right place to help her succeed. I think this award is reward for a company that has done so well in such a short space of time. She’s not happy to stand still – she really wants to go on to the next level.”