For those who know Ben Franks, it’s no surprise to see awards coming his way.
We first met Ben when he attended a Bath Rebel Meetup before joining Yena as a member and now, with his company Novel Wines, is an Official Brand Partner, supporting our work & the whole community as a result.
Someone so young knowing so much about wine is either worrying or highly impressive. It’s safe to say, with Ben, it’s the latter. Over the years we’ve been lucky enough to see him (and support his journey) from budding entrepreneur to running a fantastic retail business and being currently just one level away from being a Master of Wine.
His latest recognition comes in the form of an invite, to be a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (the RSA) for his work as an entrepreneur and for introducing unique wines to the UK market.
Full info on the RSA here: https://www.thersa.org/
We asked Ben how he felt about this new accolade (of many more to come, we’re sure):
I was invited to join to acknowledge my work as an entrepreneur in bringing new wines from new areas to market here in the UK, as well as for my work in enterprise higher education. It was a big surprise to be asked and I was absolutely over the moon because I love the work the RSA does – addressing real-world problems with creative and progressive ideas, all with the ultimate aim of making the world a better place. It’s an organisation that focuses on the human element (mental health, wellbeing, culture, a real impact on the day to day) which is important not to forget amongst all of today’s technical innovation.
Wine is, in parallel, a trade that’s about bringing people together and joining new cultures through sharing wine with people you love but also new acquaintances, friends, etc. You can learn a lot about culture and history through wine, just as you can with food.
Ben is truly an inspiration to all in the Yena community, providing hugely valuable access to resources for hundreds of other founders & freelancers through his support of the Yena mission.
If you’re a wine lover then we can’t recommend more highly (genuinely) that you check out Novel Wines. A fantastic choice for client gifts, team rewards or a night in with dinner.
