Resilient Business of the Year

In October 2023, Little’s Chauffeur Drive was named Resilient Business of the Year at the Women’s Enterprise Scotland Awards. Managing Director Heather Matthews had been shortlisted in the category alongside six other Scottish business leaders, with the winner announced at the awards ceremony at voco Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow on 26 October. The award followed an exceptionally challenging period for our business and the wider travel industry. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Little’s lost up to 90% of its business for around 18 months. With travel severely restricted, we scaled operations back to protect the company until demand returned. When international travel resumed, COP26 in Glasgow provided an important opportunity to rebuild: we rapidly expanded operations to handle more than 300 hires a day, bringing in 140 additional chauffeurs and the same number of vehicles to meet demand. Receiving the Resilient Business of the Year award recognised the way the team had navigated that disruption and rebuilt the business after the pandemic. Heather later reflected that the experience had strengthened her ability to adapt to changing circumstances, while Little’s described its post-pandemic recovery as a source of particular pride.