Solihull couple win two national awards
A couple from Solihull have won two national business awards.
Home Dine, launched by Graham Jones and Marianne Kelly (pictured), have won 'Best app and website ' and 'Best business response to the crisis (micro businesses and start-ups) ' at the UK Business Awards, organised by Awards International.
Graham and Marianne launched Home Dine Solihull last year, a website and app that helps promote local businesses within the local community. After the couple 's wedding was cancelled due to Covid restrictions, they decided to use their wedding fund to help businesses and the local community at a time when they needed it most.
The platform currently has over 100 local businesses and features over 200 miles of circular walks around Solihull. All of the walks feature independent pit-stops, such as pubs and cafes, and are designed to encourage the community to explore the local area and discover and support local businesses.
Graham said: “The walks have featured on BBC News and over 50,000 people have enjoyed them and discovered new independent businesses and supported them along the way.
“The platform is not just a local directory, you can also sign-up to receive discounts of up to 25 per cent at all the independents featured. The digital subscription service has been recently featured in The Sunday Times and is proving very popular with local residents.
“We 've had over 750,000 visits to the site and have over 13,000 followers on Facebook and Instagram within the first year. ”
Marianne added: "We've both worked tirelessly alongside our full time jobs in the last year to create home dine and help elevate the work that the independents in Solihull are doing. What's kept us going is the messages of thanks that we receive from the businesses we work with who are incredibly grateful for the new customers that home dine attracts and the local community for keeping them active and fulfilled during lockdown."
You can download the home dine app from the App Store or Google Play or visit www.home-dine.co.uk