Winner: MODERN FAÇADE SOLUTIONS
Aycliffe Business Make Your Mark Awards
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by
THE FINALISTS
Modern Façade Solutions founder Vince Lee accepts the Newcomer of the Year accolade from Stuart Murray of category sponsor Murtek.
Winner: MODERN FAÇADE SOLUTIONS
From heart operation to an award-winning business owner – it’ s been a remarkable two years for Modern Façade Solutions founder Vince Lee.
In 2024, Vince was poised to start his company- a firm that now delivers bespoke metal façade rainscreen and cladding systems from its Hurworth Road base and was crowned Newcomer of the Year at the Make Your Mark Awards.
And yet on the day he set his business up, Vince had something else on his mind too.
Proudly clutching the trophy, which was presented to him by Murtek MD Stuart Murray, Vince said:“ The day I tried to set up Modern Façade, I was in a meeting on the morning with the banks and financiers and in the afternoon I was going for a heart operation at James Cook Hospital.
“ I got to the end of the meeting and said,‘ right, thanks very much – I’ m going for my heart op now!’ I guess that shows the passion behind the business.
“ I was only in hospital for two days and then two days after I came out, Tim, one of the other driving forces behind the business, was knocking on my door, saying‘ are we going to set up the business?’ I think the next day I was having a coffee with him, discussing our plans.” An engineer by trade and armed with an MSc in project management, Vince had worked in the UK and Dubai before starting Modern Façade when the company he worked for previously went bankrupt.
Since then, it’ s been a whirlwind journey, with the company now 20-strong and a healthy order book.
Vince said:“ I’ m lucky that I’ ve got such a brilliant team. From the guys on the shop floor to the office staff, it’ s probably the best team I’ ve ever worked with.
“ They’ ve got such a passion and are behind us 100 %, so it’ s really nice to get an award that shows all the hard work we put in.”
And as for the future, Vince would like a similar reputation to another well-known brand.
He explained:“ I want to be the Marks and Spencer of this industry so people will come to us, knowing they’ ll get quality – and I want to deliver on time. If I can do those two things, I’ ll be very happy.
“ We’ ve grown from zero to around eight key clients at the moment, each delivering about fifty grand a month, so it’ s pretty good – and we’ ve got some good innovations coming too.”
FLEETHUB Launched officially in 2025, Fleethub is a remarkable newcomer to the UK commercial vehicle sector.
Operating from a compact, two-person office on Aycliffe Business Park, the company has rapidly scaled its operations to successfully manage hundreds of commercial vehicles.
Impressively, Fleethub has achieved this phenomenal growth largely behind closed doors and with little to no traditional marketing.
Despite its modest operational footprint, it has quickly established itself as a major industry player. The business demonstrated immediate financial success, generating a £ 1m turnover in its first year, and has impressively exceeded £ 2m over the last 12 months.
THE RECOVERY ROOM Founded in May 2025 by 29-year-old Rhiannon Foulds, The Recovery Room is a thriving health and wellbeing business in Newton Aycliffe.
Offering professional recovery facilities to athletes and the wider community, it has quickly become a respected hub attracting clients from across the North-East, including elite sports professionals.
Despite facing early equipment failures and financial hurdles, Rhiannon invested her own savings and balances full-time employment to reinvest profits into the business.
More than just a physical recovery space, it strongly promotes mental wellbeing. Driven by resilience and ambition, The Recovery Room is an outstanding, highpotential new enterprise.
PREVIOUS WINNERS 2025: DART INDUSTRIAL SERVICES 2024: FORREST PARK SCHOOL 2022: THE FISH TANK 2018: DIGITAL EDGE 2016: UTC SOUTH DURHAM 2015: ROF 59 2014: AYCLIFFE BUSINESS
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