UnderTheDoormat Does The Treble: Three Awards, Accreditation and More!

It’s been a busy year for us at UnderTheDoormat! Over the summer, the company piloted the STAA accreditation scheme – and passed with flying colours. Highly commended for our overall performance – and particularly our hospitality and comprehensive insurance policy – UnderTheDoormat is the first company in the industry (and probably the world) to have achieved accreditation.

Hot on the heels of the accreditation scheme results came announcements regarding several business awards. First came the news we had been shortlisted for Best SME Business and Entrepreneur of the Year in the
Wandsworth Business Awards

Led by the Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce, this scheme was established to reward the achievements of local businesses in the thriving London borough of Wandsworth. Now in their sixth year, the awards are notoriously competitive; as Steve Pinto, Chief Executive of Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce puts it: ‘I continue to be very impressed with the quality, enthusiasm and passion of the businesses that enter […]. [These] awards demonstrate that Wandsworth is an exciting place to work’. To be shortlisted for two awards is quite an achievement, and the UnderTheDoormat team are very proud to be through to the next stage of the judging process.

But that’s not the only exciting news to have reached UnderTheDoormat HQ recently: we’re also very pleased to learn that founder and CEO, Merilee Karr, has been shortlisted for two further, prestigious awards.

At UnderTheDoormat, we are committed to offering outstanding service to our clients and homeowners, as well as pioneering improvements across the short-term rental sector. To be recognised in this way is an enormous honour. – Merilee Karr, Chairwoman of STAA and CEO of UnderTheDoormat

In recognition of her commitment to small business advocacy (in particular, her contribution to the industry body, the STAA), Merilee is a finalist in the ‘Small Business Advocate of the Year’ category at the British Small Business Awards. This important awards scheme celebrates the ‘engine room of the economy’ – the UK’s small business sector – and aims to promote the nation’s best small companies, sole traders, and micro businesses.

Finally, Merilee has also been shortlisted for ‘Influential Business Woman of the Year’ at the
National Business Women’s Awards

. Sponsored by high-profile companies like Liebherr, as well as enterprise powerhouses like Enterprise Nation, these awards highlight the incredible achievements of businesswomen across the UK.

‘To be recognised in this way is an enormous honour,’ Merilee recently commented. ‘At UnderTheDoormat, we are committed to offering outstanding service to our guests and homeowners, as well as pioneering improvements across the short-term rental sector. We have been very proud to be the first company to receive STAA accreditation. To be shortlisted for several awards – both as a company and me individually – is the cherry on top: the culmination of many years of hard work, and a great achievement for everyone involved.’

It will be a nail-biting few months as we wait for the results to be announced. The British Small Business Awards ceremony takes place on the 31 October, with the Wandsworth Business Awards following on the 16 November and the National Women’s Business Awards on the 7 December. Best of luck to all the finalists – it’s going to be an exciting end to the year!