Hundreds of people were shaken, stirred and royally entertained as the James Bond-themed Shropshire business “Oscars” party spilled over into the early hours.

The seventh annual black-tie county business awards gala, organised jointly by Shropshire Chamber of Commerce and the Shropshire Star at Telford’s International Centre, last night attracted the largest audience yet.

Salop Leisure, the mobile holiday home company from Shrewsbury, was the night’s big winner.

The firm, which has just been at the centre of a management buyout, was crowned Shropshire Company of the Year. Matt Sandford of Pure Communications in Dorrington was also celebrating after picking up two awards.

He claimed the best new business, and entrepreneur of the year.

Other winners included Protomold of Hortonwood, Alcoa of Stafford Park, Barbers Property Agents of Shrewsbury, Skillbuilders from Ludlow, and The Jackloc Company of Priorslee.

The 500-plus members of the audience were also invited to become Dragon’s Den-style judges for the evening by voting for the winner of the Star Idea competition.

Three local inventors presented their plans in the hope of winning a prize package worth £6,500 to turn the dream into reality, and the winner was Lisa Pickering of Hadley in Telford who has developed bio-degradable “growing” greetings cards which turn into flowers or shrubs when planted.

The evening was given a James Bond theme to mark the 45th anniversary of both Shropshire Chamber of Commerce, and the 007 film series.

One of the star attractions was a gadget-laden Jaguar XKR which featured in the Bond movie Die Another Day.

There was also a raffle to win hundreds of pounds of rare film memorabilia, including genuine casino chips which were used during shooting of another 007 adventure, Licence To Kill.

Shropshire Chamber of Commerce launched its new patronage scheme, unveiling Geoffrey Davies of Ludlow-based McConnel as its first patron, and outlined plans for a £500,000 revamp of its headquarters in Telford. Chamber president Tony Randall said: “In a changing business climate, Shropshire businesses have displayed resilience and commitment to their goals.”

He said the awards had shown Shropshire to be a “vibrant county which is full of potential”.

Awards master of ceremonies Carl Jones, assistant editor of the Shropshire Star, said: “This is the seventh year of the county business awards, and is by far the biggest yet. Judges toured all corners of the county meeting the shortlisted finalists – they’ve covered a combined distance this year of nearly 1,000 miles.”

l Don’t miss Monday’s Business supplement for more stories and pictures from the 2007 awards. And keep your eye on our website, www.shropshirestar.com for video footage from the evening.

By Carl Jones

WHO’S WHO ON THE BUSINESS ROLL OF HONOURCOMPANY OF THE YEAR: Salop Leisure, Shrewsbury.

BEST NEW BUSINESS: Pure Communications, Dorrington.

TECHNOLOGY: The Protomold Company, Telford.

EXPORT: Alcoa Fastening Systems, Telford.

CUSTOMER SERVICE: Barbers Property Agents, Shrewsbury.

ENTREPRENEUR: Matt Sandford, Pure Communications.

COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY: Skillbuilders, Ludlow.

THOMAS TELFORD AWARD FOR INNOVATION: The Jackloc Company, Telford.

STAR IDEA: Lisa Pickering, of Hadley, Telford.