The founder and managing director of Webmart created an innovative way to operate a traditional business that's greener, more efficient, more ethical and more cost effective.

• Although Webmart is a print management consultancy, there isn't a printer in sight. Instead, it uses its award-winning software to bring together print companies with spare capacity and clients with jobs to print. "There is a huge inefficiency with printers sitting there idle. We wanted to fill the gaps," explains Biltcliffe.
• When he saw the start-up opportunity he bit the bullet and went for it. "I was motivated by a personal need to set up my own business. It was something I had to get out of my system and prove to myself that I could do," he says.
• He started the business with £10,000 of his own savings and gradually built up reserves in the company to allow for expansion. "The business is entirely self-financed, we've never had to borrow any money or use outside investors," he says. Last year's turnover was £30.3m-more than £1m per employee.
• He says he stays ahead of the competition by recruiting and developing the best people, and will be building on the 30-strong "crew" he has now. "I want to create a £100m business with just 50 staff. So I've set the bar high for the team. We therefore have to ensure we invest in the team and get a return on that investment."
• Biltcliffe believes the more you give, the more you get back. Each employee or "webmarteer" receives as much training, mentoring and support as he or she needs and enjoys a strong profit share—last year's staff bonus was a massive 88 per cent of salary.
• He believes in "doing well" and "doing good". Any interest earned on money sitting in the bank goes to the Webmart Charitable Trust, which last year totalled £94,000. "Rather than redistributing value, we want to give people a toolkit to create value," explains Biltcliffe.
• He has set up a business school in Africa. "We set up the school in Harar in Ethiopia, to teach locals English, ICT and business skills, so they can set up their own businesses." As each employee mentors someone on the course, it means they get to give something back, too.
• Green issues are right at the top of Biltcliffe's agenda. All carbon is offset and the company is creating oxygen farms, where land is reforested and turned into wildlife havens.
• This month Webmart launches its "print miles" concept, where clients and suppliers will be able to calculate and offset the carbon footprint of their print projects. They can also view the profiles of the supply base, so that they can choose to be more eco-friendly.