By Karen Peattie
BUILDING contractors, airlines, food and drink companies, tech organisations and colleges are among the Glasgow firms that have been shortlisted for 16 awards that shine a spotlight on a range of disciplines across the city’s business community.
The Glasgow Business Awards 2021, organised by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by Royal Bank of Scotland with The Herald as media partner, celebrate the city’s best businesses across a range of areas including innovation, health and wellbeing, communication, and overall performance.
Four of the 16 categories this year focus on sustainability in homage to Glasgow hosting the global COP26 event in November.
Richard Muir, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce’s deputy chief executive, described the awards as “a fantastic platform to showcase the triumphs from businesses of all sizes and specialisms in our city”.
He said: “Recognising businesses and celebrating their successes this year feels more poignant than ever as I have been so inspired by the resilience and innovation of our business community amidst such a challenging backdrop.
“Our thanks as always go to our title sponsors Royal Bank of Scotland and the strong array of category sponsors too. Congratulations to all of the shortlisted businesses, we wish them the best of luck for the awards this October.”
The chair of Royal Bank of Scotland’s Scotland board, Malcolm Buchanan, added: “All eyes are on the city just now as it prepares to host COP26, so the time is right to celebrate the businesses and individuals who help make Glasgow great.
“The Glasgow Chamber of Commerce Awards hold an important space on the city’s business and social calendar and Royal Bank of Scotland is delighted once again to partner and support the event.
“Glasgow is a hive of business activity and these awards offer an opportunity to celebrate the skill, enterprise and diversity which exists here and showcase the ecosystem and support which helps businesses here thrive.
“We wish every entrant the best of luck and encourage everyone who has the opportunity to enter to do so.”
The Glasgow Business Awards have championed the city’s business community for over 20 years and will take place on October 7 after an enforced suspension in 2020 because of the pandemic.
The 2021 shortlist is: The Glasgow Business Award for Best Performing Small-Medium Business, sponsored by Beam Digital and Design
4icg; AC Whyte & Co Ltd; The UPAC Group; Total Homes Cooperative; WEEE Scotland Ltd; and Wholesale Domestic Bathrooms The Glasgow Business Award for Best Performing Large Business Cullen Eco-Friendly Packaging; JW Filshill; Kibble; Kick ICT Group Ltd; Loganair; Merck BioReliance Services
The Glasgow Business Award for Entrepreneur of the Year, sponsored by Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie
Cathie Boyd, Cryptic; Michael O’Connor, HAELO; Craig McGee, Panoptic Events; Tony Quinn, Silver Cloud; Angela Prentner-Smith, This is Milk Ltd; and Stephen McCallion, ZLX Business Solutions
The Glasgow Business Award for Excellence in Communications, sponsored by The Herald
AC Whyte & Co Ltd; Allied Vehicles Group; AW Telecom; Panoptic Events; and San Marco Scotland Ltd The Glasgow Business Award for Family Business of the Year, sponsored by Get Living B-DACS Ltd; Douglas Laing & Co; fatBuzz; JW Filshill; The UPAC Group; and Wholesale Domestic Bathrooms
The Glasgow Business Award for Green Champion, sponsored by ScottishPower
Adalec Ltd; Consenna; Dear Green Coffee Roasters; MacArthur Green; Macdeck Landscaping Ltd; and Renewable Parts
The Glasgow Business Award for Health and Wellbeing, sponsored by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde City of Glasgow College
JW Filshill; Mabbett; and Scottish Sports Futures
The Glasgow Business Award for Innovation in Business, sponsored by Circular Glasgow
ACS; Consenna; Macdeck Landscaping Ltd; Star Refrigeration Ltd; Total Homes Cooperative; and WEEE Scotland Ltd
The Glasgow Business Award for International Trade, sponsored by Dentons
Allied Vehicles Group; Cullen; Eco-Friendly Packaging; Douglas Laing & Co; House of McCallum
The Glasgow Business Award for Sustainable Development, sponsored by Scottish Water
City of Glasgow College; Multiplex Construction Europe Ltd; Scottish Leather Group; St Enoch Centre; Total Homes Cooperative; WEEE Scotland
The Glasgow Business Award for Young Business Person of the Year, sponsored by City of Glasgow College
Graham Grieve, A1 SEO Glasgow; Chris Hughes, Present Pal; Caitlin White, fatBuzz Ltd; Bruce Walker, Purist Gin; Brian Toward, Wholesale Domestic Bathrooms
The Glasgow Business Award for Community Wealth Building, sponsored by Glasgow City Council Homes for Good; Set Training; Total Homes Cooperative; and Wasps Studios
The Glasgow Business Award for Net Zero Achievement, sponsored by Glasgow City Council DARe-me Consulting Engineers Ltd; Dear Green Coffee Roasters; MacArthur Green; and Total Homes Cooperative
The Royal Bank of Scotland’s Most Outstanding Business, with the title awarded to one of the winners from the other categories, will be announced at the awards. Also up for grabs once again is Glasgow’s Favourite Business, sponsored by The Herald’s sister publication the Glasgow Times. SWG3 currently holds the title after winning the public vote in 2019.
The Glasgow Chamber of Commerce Award for Lifetime Achievement will be presented on the night too.
Most recently, this accolade was awarded to retired Edrington chief executive Ian Curle. For more details on the Glasgow Business Awards visit: www.glasgowbusinessawards.com
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