ENTERPRISING brothers Martin, pictured left, and Jason Williams, right, are hoping to continue their winning ways in the next stage of the UK's most important competition for young business people.

Their Chepstow audio-visual promotion company Evolution AV provides up-to-the-minute, multi-media marketing systems for corporate clients.

Already winners of the Gwent regional heats of the Shell LiveWIRE Young Entrepreneur of the Year competition, they now compete against 12 other go-getting companies for the competition's Welsh title at the Millennium Stadium on May 28.

If they win the £1,000 first prize there, they will qualify for one of 11 places at the UK final in London on June 20, where the top cash prize will be £10,000.

The brothers launched their company into a highly-competitive sector of business last May after starting in a room of their parents' home in Shirenewton.

They now occupy offices in Moor Street, Chepstow.

In Cardiff special category prizes of £750 and £500 will also be presented to two businesses which have shown outstanding achie-vement in one of the following areas: innovation, customer service, environment, retail, manufacturing, job creation, exporting and new technology.

Martin Williams, 25, said: "We know what we are going to do with our business plan. "We are going to make it a little different, a little bit contemporary, and that's all I am going to say! We are confident but we don't want to be over-confident.

"Our win in the Gwent finals was a complete surprise to us but we are still hoping for the best in the next one."

Shell LiveWIRE reports a 200% increase in the number of young people in Wales who want to start their own businesses. During the past 12 months, 4,000 have approached the company for information and advice.

John Devitt, Shell Live-WIRE deputy director, told Business Argus: "The increased numbers of young people approaching us in the last 12 months is a clear indication that enterprise in Wales is flourishing.

"As well as celebrating the achievements of the region's enterprising young people, the awards also highlight the very real contribution which young businesses make to the economy.

"Last year's regional finalists in England and Wales had a combined net profit of over £1.1 million and since 1995 the 629 regional finalists achieved a combined annual turnover of £46 million and generated over 1,800 new jobs."

A survey of last year's regional finalists revealed that they would have to be paid on average £55,600 a year to return to work for an employer and more than half said that no amount of money could tempt them away from running their own business.