Today’s the day that Dawn Esther Rondeau will discover whether she’s to be crowned UK Business Woman of the Year.

The Weymouth-based business adviser is one of 15 finalists in the National SME Business Awards being staged at Wembley Stadium tonight.

After 14 years running her own business consultancy – D52 Business Toolkit – she was nominated in 2020 for the prestigious title.

Dawn took part in a rigorous selection process against stiff competition which included providing case studies and financial reports.

Her clients were also contacted.

The 30-strong judging panel included representatives from EE, Yorkshire Bank, Dell Technologies, Cambridge University and Wembley Stadium.

Dawn, who has supported more than 700 businesses across the country to become sustainable, said: “It is an honour to be in the finals at Wembley having spent the past 14 years supporting SME’s to start and grow.

“Running a business can be lonely and, at times, it can be tough.

“I am thrilled to be recognised for my expertise and hope that this will, in some way, encourage my clients – both past and present as well as my current connections – to keep pushing ahead in what has been the most testing time in our business history.”

Dawn is now the Chief Operating Officer of Weymouth Business Improvement District, also known as We Are Weymouth.

Due to Covid, she pivoted her business in 2020/21 to create online courses, allowing her time to have a more hands-on role with the BID.

Among the people rooting for her success is Rick Simmonds, pictured left, Senior Vice President of Weymouth and Portland Chamber of Commerce and Founder of Verbu.

He said: “Dawn’s presence and visibility in the south west business community is a reflection of her status and credibility as both a business coach and leader.

“From a personal point of view, she has helped me achieve the kind of business results I would have thought were impossible in a pandemic.”