WHEN brothers Richard and Ross Stewart pooled their talents to form a company in Selby more than a year ago, it not only "had legs" - it had wheels.

Their firm, Chequers Transport Services, based in a 4,000sq ft warehouse (used for short-term storage for clients) and offices rented in Ousegate, Selby, now has a fleet of ten vehicles of various sizes with another on order and a full-time staff of ten.

Such is the stuff worthy of scrutiny by the judges in the Small Business of the Year category.

Ross, 32, had been working for a national marquee and event organiser, while Richard, 30, was an accountant for a New York bank based in London.

It was Ross who first realised that there were plenty of courier, transport and haulage firms around, but few were willing to go the extra mile - not only deliver the 1,000 stacked chairs to marquees at Wimbledon, but place them around the tables as well; not only off-load machinery, but carry it to the first floor.

The result was Chequers, which in its first year outstripped all targets by doubling the intended £80,000 turnover as a client list grew rapidly, demanding more specialised and diverse contracts.

It ranges from delivering and installing computer cabinets to financial institutions and technology companies, to helping with refurbishment of hotels and restaurants for large catering manufacturing companies.