Knitting shop boss wins business prize
 | | Susan Cropper: ""Loop has been a labour of love |
A KNITTING shop owner has been voted one of the UK's top entrepreneurs by Dragon's Den star Peter Jones.
Susan Cropper, who runs Loop Knitting, in Cross Street, Islington, beat hundreds of other entries to be named one of the top 20 small firms in the country in a prestigious competition run by BT Business.
 | | Peter Jones |
Ms Cropper, 50, who opened the shop in 2005, said: "For Loop to be one of the winners means so much to me. Loop has been a labour of love for the past few years and for all of the hard work and passion to be recognised is fabulous.
"I was always involved in textiles but it's my first shop. I thought I would be a lovely idea to have everything from spools and yarns to finished knitted products under one roof."
She added: "It's a great location and there are a lot of young families about. Lots of young women are knitting now - my core clientele are women in their 20s to 40s but we also have lots of older women and professional men too."
Among the judging panel was top photographer Rankin, who took portraits of the 20 winners to "capture the essence of their business" on camera.
"It was very exciting," said Ms Cropper. "I know Rankin's work and I felt really honoured."
Head judge Mr Jones, who made his millions in media and TV, said: "The winners are bucking a trend, creating stand-out businesses, harnessing the developments of technology and thriving.
"I was massively impressed with the standard of entries and the diversity of the entrepreneurs and I congratulate the winners for being selected.
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