LEADING business figures got together yesterday to whittle down the shortlist for the ninth Brighton and Hove Business Awards.

The judges included Allied Irish Bank, Brighton & Hove Jobs.com, Cardens Accountants, Qualifa, Graves Jenkins, Classic Consulting, Cluttons, Juice 107.2FM, Martin Searle Solicitors, Close Brothers Invoice Finance, MDHub, Absolute Brighton, Chamber of Commerce and the Tourism Alliance.

The Brighton and Hove Business Awards are delivered in association with The Argus, which was represented by editor Michael Beard.

Tony Mernagh, executive director of the Brighton and Hove Economic Partnership chaired the proceedings for the final time.

He said: “The entries seem to cover every aspect of business life from creative digital services to hospitality and the night-time economy.”

The shortlist will be revealed in The Argus next Tuesday.