The award is one of UK’s most prestigious business recognitions, and was received with high enthusiasm by the company’s management. Managing Director Peter Taylor stated: “We’re delighted to have won this recognition for our outstanding success in international trade which has seen our export earnings grow by over 123% in the last three years as we have developed the Hotter brand in markets such as the USA, the Middle East, and South Africa”.

Hotter has the design, development and manufacturing oprations centered in their Lancashire headquarters, where the factory and customer service centre are based. The company has more than 75 Hotter stores across the UK, one in South Africa and some international locations in the pipeline. Each year over two million pairs of shoes are shipped to over one million customers around the world.

The manufacturing business was established in 1959 and the Hotter brand was created in the 1990s with the aim of making stylish and ultra comfortable shoes for both women and men. Hotter now employs over 1 300 people across the UK and, according to the British Footwear Association, is the UK’s biggest shoe manufacturer making a pair of shoes every 20 seconds. It is currently backed by Electra Partners, the private equity fund manager, which acquired a majority stake in the business in January 2014.