Paul Sellew named Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 New England Award Winner

Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) announced that Paul Sellew, founder and CEO of Little Leaf Farms was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 New England Award winner.

The Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards program, the release states, “is one of the preeminent competitive awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies.”

Sellew was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award winners, leading CEOs, investors and other regional business leaders. The candidates were evaluated based on their demonstration of building long-term value through entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact, among other core contributions and attributes.

"It's truly an honor to be named the EY New England Entrepreneur of the Year and I'm extremely proud of our company's achievements," said Sellew. "This could not have been possible without the entire team at Little Leaf Farms – all of our success comes from the dedication and passion every team member puts in day after day to move our mission forward, and I'm grateful to share this recognition with them."

Sellew founded Little Leaf Farms in 2015 with the mission to transform the way food is grown. Today, the brand is the No. 1 packaged lettuce sustainably grown through controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and delivers local, deliciously crisp, wonderfully fresh, uniquely long-lasting and sustainably grown leafy greens from its state-of-the-art greenhouses to grocery shelves within 24 hours of harvesting. Little Leaf Farms operates greenhouses in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, with plans for additional expansion in Pennsylvania, and recently announced its projection to break $100 million in retail sales by the end of 2023. Little Leaf Farms is available at major retailers throughout the Northeast into the Southeast, with additional growth to come throughout the Midwest.

For nearly four decades, EY US has honored entrepreneurs whose ambition, courage and ingenuity have driven their companies' success, transformed their industries and made a positive impact on their communities. Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners become lifetime members of a global, multi-industry community of entrepreneurs, with exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of program alumni and other ecosystem members in over 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources. Since 1986, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized more than 11,000 US executives.

As a New England award winner, Sellew is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 National Awards. The National Award winners including the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will be announced in November at the Strategic Growth Forum^®, one of the nation's most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will then move on to compete for the World Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in June 2024.  

Past Entrepreneur Of The Year program has honored the inspirational leadership of entrepreneurs include Daymond John of FUBU, Hamdi Ulukaya of Chobani and Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn Corporation.