The first ever recipients of The King’s Awards for Enterprise have been announced today (21 April), celebrating the achievements of UK businesses.
This year, 148 businesses representing every part of the United Kingdom and a diverse range of sectors have been recognised by His Majesty The King as among the best in the country awards.
Businesses like these are central to delivering on one of the Government’s five priorities to grow our economy – from creating new opportunities and supporting people into work through to developing new innovations and exporting the best of Britain around the world.
Minister for Enterprise Kevin Hollinrake said:
I congratulate the first ever recipients of The King’s Awards for Enterprise, who exemplify the talent, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit of British business.
I wish them every success and commend the invaluable contributions they make to communities both at home and overseas, helping to grow the UK economy.
This year’s winners include:
- Fever-Tree Drinks, based in London, are the UK’s largest soft drink exporter. The company’s premium mixers are distributed in more than 90 countries worldwide, with teams in key regions including the US, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. The company receives The King’s Award for International Trade for Outstanding Continuous Growth in overseas sales over the last six years.
- Scotland’s Bravest Manufacturing Company, a social enterprise based in Renfrewshire that provides employment opportunities to injured military veterans and people with disabilities. They have been awarded The King’s Award for Promoting Opportunity.
- Naturaw Pet Food Ltd. a Yorkshire based manufacturer of natural unprocessed, raw meat-based dog food produced in a solar powered factory. The company has developed completely plastic-free packaging, and sources all their high welfare meat from Britain, ensuring the highest level of animal welfare and low food miles. They have been awarded The King’s Award for Sustainable Development.
The King’s Awards for Enterprise was previously known as The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, and the new name reflects His Majesty The King’s desire to continue the legacy of Queen Elizabeth II by recognising outstanding UK businesses. The Award programme, now in its 57th year, has awarded over 7,000 companies since its inception in 1965.
This year’s King’s Awards for Enterprise are given for outstanding achievement in:
- Innovation (47)
- International trade (78)
- Sustainable development (15)
- Promoting opportunity (through social mobility) (9)
His Majesty’s Lord Lieutenants will be presenting the Awards to businesses locally throughout the year.
Eligible businesses are free to apply for one or more categories. The recipients pass a robust assessment process, judged by experts from industry, academia, the voluntary sector and senior officials in Whitehall.
On that basis, each year, The King’s Awards for Enterprise recipients are recommended by the Prime Minister.
The full list of Awardees across the four categories can be found here.
Photo by David Woolfall, Wikimedia commons.