Bringing London Businesses Together
Welcome back to the Creative Awards London blog. in today's blog we will focus on one of the highlights of the London event scene, The Evening Standard Business Awards. Now in its second year, the awards bring together the movers and shakers in the business world across a range of categories ranging from Media business of the year to Property company of the year.
The awards took place at the illustrious Banqueting House in Whitehall on the 29th of June. Hosted by Kristy Wark guests enjoyed a champagne networking reception, the glamorous award ceremony itself, a keynote speech delivered by Facebook's Nicola Mendelsohn and an after-awards reception in the Undercroft bar.
Across the evening a wide range of categories (full list of nominees below), highlighting the wealth of businesses and services within the city, were on show. From household brands to global industry leading companies, the diversity of nominees and winners showcases the strength of London as a global business centre. Home to over 800,000 private sector businesses, making it the 5th largest metropolitan economy in the world, London has seen many challenges emerging within the last year, especially within the business sphere. In particular London’s businesses have had to tackle questions around their EU workforce and trade with Europe as well as massive Sterling devaluation. Looking further afield, the uncertainty of the Trump administration and its implication for US involvement within global trade is another challenge that businesses have had to navigate.
Fitting of the high profile and luxurious event Creative Awards London were charged with creating a bespoke trophy to be presented to some of the most influential individuals and companies within London. The modernist design features the body of the award made from a single piece of stainless steel carrying the message of sleekness, modernity and simplicity. The centre of the award features a negative cut out of the Evening Standard's logo, Eros. Resting on a varnished beech base, the bespoke award carries the message of The Evening Standard and captures the feel of the awards ceremony.
Tech start-up of the year
- Darktrace, new cybersecurity player
- Citymapper, public transport app
- POD Point, electic car charging points
- Monzo, digital-only bank
Tech company of the year
- ARM, trailblazing chip designs in AI
- Micro Focus, ambitious takeovers
- Purplebricks, changing property world
- Snap, successful flotation despite jitters
SME of the Year
- Lucky Generals, cutting edge ad agency
- Hotel Chocolat, innovative confectioner
- Hire Space, event space shortage solver
- Fashion Enter, ethical clothes maker
Property company of the year
- Berkeley Group, London resi giant
- Land Securities, growing in tough times
- Battersea Power Station Development, successfully developing Thames icon
- Grainger, much-needed rental supplier
Takeover of the year
- BAT-Reynolds
- Micro Focus-Hewlett Packard Enterprise
- Shanks Renewi-VG
- Sainsbury’s-Argos
Media business of the year
- BT Sport, driving competition in TV
- Adam & Eve/DDB, ad agency supremo
- Facebook, changing media landscape
- Framestore, Hollywood special FX
Financial services company of the year
- Virgin Money, strong, steady growth
- First Direct, consistent customer focus
- Metro Bank, High Street challenger
- JP Morgan, strength in M&A landscape
Consumer firm of the year
- Matchesfashion.com, high-end retail
- Co-op Supermarkets, turnaround
- Morrisons, nursed back to growth
- Just Eat, transforming restaurant trade
Brexporter of the year
- Asos, massive growth in International
- Dairy Crest, push into Chinese whey
- BBA, US acquisition for growth
- Prudential, Brexit-proof Asian growth
Corporate Citizen of the Year
- Allbright, backing women in business
- Costa Coffee, recycling on a huge scale
- Marks & Spencer, veteran carbon cutter
- PwC, staff community programmes
Entrepreneur of the year
- Aron Gelbard, Ben Stanway, Bloom & Wild
- Alice Bentinck, tech incubator
- Dumi Oburota, music manager
- Mike Lynch, for Invoke Capital VC outfit
Business of the year
- Legal & General, daring to be different
- Melrose, transforming businesses
- Aviva, bold push into technology
- Facebook, tech game-changer
Personality of the year
- Stephen Kelly, CEO of Sage
- Rupert Soames, CEO of Serco
- Alison Brittain, CEO of Whitbread
- Jayne-Anne Gadhia, CEO of Virgin Money