I’m Diana Babics, founder of Nourish Awards. I began in finance (accounts and auditing) before deciding this simply wasn’t for me. I then headed off to university as a mature student, initially to study art and design and latterly interior architecture. When I left college, I continued to work in design, whilst broadening my horizons into marketing and product management before setting up my own agency in 2010 at the height of the recession.

My son was born in 2013 which was the same year I launched the award-winning ‘Gluten Free Centre,’ which at the time was the biggest independent community hub for people who were coeliac or gluten free (as I found myself to be).

From that moment I’ve been fully involved within the free-from food movement, however it was being diagnosed with pre-diabetes that really prompted a full-scale immersion within an increasingly vocal healthier eating movement. By the time Nourish was launched in 2017 free-from was mainstream but healthy wasn’t and it was all too clear that the nation had to address it’s spiralling consumption of starch, fat and sugar.

Tell me about the Nourish Awards.

The Nourish Awards is the perfect stage for clean deck products of a healthier disposition to strut their stuff, showcase very real points of difference over their everyday rivals and enjoy some well-deserved time in the media spotlight.

When did you realise your were onto something really interesting?

It was taking time off to look after my poorly child that gave me the breathing space I needed to turn a long-standing niggling idea into a tangible award.

What makes your awards unique?

We’re not a beauty pageant for lovely branding/packaging (albeit we appreciate a great look & positioning) or solely focused on great taste and textures (albeit taste is pivotal to any success story).

Our priority hones in specifically on nutritional integrity and best-in-class ingredient decks. What constitutes healthy is a moving feast so it’s vital that there’s an award that celebrates pioneers within this field. After my son recovered, it took three months to turn written scribblings into an ambitious launch.

Tell us something about your brand that we might not know.

80% of our winners from the 2018 awards are no longer in business, which only reinforces that fact that a great idea isn’t in isolation enough to succeed. Managing and evolving a business isn’t for the faint-hearted because juggling budgets, brand identities, innovation chains, staff and retailer relationships isn’t without tension or heart-breaking setbacks.

Why are food awards so important to the challenger brand movement?

Food & Drink like so many business arenas are heavily skewed in favour of bigger brands with deep pockets, experienced staff, reams of data and established retailer ties. Awards in comparison offer a relative level playing field where an ambitious outsider can outmanoeuvre an establishment stalwart.

Winning awards can be a ‘touch paper’ moment that gets a brand noticed and in rear view mirror of game-changing decision-makers .

Did you always suspect you’d end up with your entrepreneurial award?

Never! It evolved very naturally but I’ve always had an enquiring mind so was never destined for a long stay in the Ccorporate world!

Best and worst decisions you’ve made do far as an entrepreneur?

Best: Convincing Deborah Meaden to be a judge at our 2018 awards, tapping into her vast knowledge and entrepreneurial know-how whilst benefitting from the extra pinch of wow of stardust that she brought to our event! They say don’t meet your heroes but she was the most wonderful person I’ve ever met and her support and presence in the first year of the awards was central to both the launch and its evolution.

Worst: We tried to launch a well-intentioned product-based box to showcase our winners and encourage consumers to experiment with NEW, top-drawer products. It was one of our shorter-lived initiatives because factors like perishability made this a venture fraught with set-backs.

Are there any projects that you’ve had to reject?

Plain Water and fresh apples, we’re good but not that good when it comes to comparing the nutritional worth of essential commodities. We do judge eggs, vinegar and oils which are difficult but there are clear markers of differentiation between products.

How do you recruit your judges?

We know our sector pretty well by now so we often reach out to prominent voices within our world and invite them to join. Others submit applications via our website! It’s all about the blend of our panel at the end of the day, which is why everyone is vetted to check we have the right mix of experts with complementary skills, experience and knowledge.

Any past entrant that left a lasting impression on you? If yes, why?

The late Damian Lee of Mr Lee’s Foods/Noodles remains the most inspirational founder I’ve ever met. I knew the business from inception and his keynote speech in 2019 will stay with both me and anyone else who attended that year’s gala, because he was very open about his cancer battle and yet the courage, grit and kindness with which he faced into was amazing!

Name some of the past award winner that really excite you.

There have been many, although it’s hard not to be impressed by the pioneering work of brands like Hunter & Gather, Junius, Perfect Ted and Take Stock (now Freja), who continue to go from strength-to-strength.

Biggest opportunity for Nourish Awards moving forward?

International expansion is a very real opportunity as healthy food & drink is a global currency. Other opportunities include travel and food service, two sectors that have rightly or wrongly been perceived as being relative foodie backwaters when it comes to ‘healthier living’ propositions. We are always keen to explore all opportunities with the right partners that make a real difference to the wider industry and what it delivers to benefit consumers.

What is your vision for the next 6 to 12 months?

There are a couple of leading-edge initiatives that come to mind. Firstly, the relaunch of our online publication the Nourish Magazine is imperative to create that all important hub and resource for all our winners, partners and judges. The Magazine 1st incarnation back in 2016-2017 was aimed primarily for consumers so this format will be very different.

It didn’t get the attention it deserved or warranted but now we’re more established now and the time is ripe for a reboot!

Secondly, we’re taking the awards to Canada to launch the inaugural Nourish Awards there for Canadian businesses. I’m excited to fly out to Vancouver early in the new year to chair the judging events and later present prizes to the winners. We are keen to connect Canadian businesses with the UK and vica-versa to support cross-pollination/shared opportunities.