Over the summer we’ve been talking to some of the winners of The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the International Trade category. From London jewellers to organic wholesalers, it’s been great to hear about some of the UK’s top exporters.
Winners of the award are invited to a Royal reception at Buckingham Palace, hosted by Her Majesty the Queen, and often see a significant increase in sales and staff motivation as a result of winning.
The winners become members with the Institute
The winners also get a year’s free membership with the Institute of Export & International Trade to support and encourage their continuing achievements in trade.
Many of the winners said they were looking forward to the networking opportunities provided by the Institute, as well as the expertise and support it provides.
Upon joining the Institute, Luton-based Ecotile Flooring Ltd told us:
"We believe that as members of the IoE we will have access to a unique range of benefits and services that will inform and support our export strategy. We are particularly interested in the expertise and advice that is available to ensure we make the best decisions and also want to take advantage of the opportunities to export to new markets and companies that membership will give us."
Essex-based Dura Composites also told us:
"Taking up membership of the Institute of Export & International Trade was a logical step for us. Having support with navigating the challenging and often complex trading conditions in international markets is invaluable and the IOE offers such a diverse range of advice and tools."
Meet the winners at the Queen’s Award Gala Dinner
You can meet some of the winners of the prize yourself by attending the Queen’s Award Gala Dinner, hosted by the Institute in honour of their achievements.
The glamorous dinner event is taking place at the Royal Horseguards Hotel in London on September 27th, and will be attended by HRH Princess Anne and keynote speaker Cathy Newman.
The award winning companies are certainly looking forward to what should be a fabulous evening of celebration.
Leicester-based Horus Music told us:
“It will be great to meet up with some of the other businesses who will be there. The diversity of the winners is really impressive and it will be great to hear their stories and to share knowledge with each other.”
You can sign up for the Queen’s Award Gala Dinner here while more information about membership with the IOE can be found here.
More information about applying for the Queen’s Awards
Though the deadline for applying for this year’s Queen’s Awards has now passed, you can watch the Open to Export webinar on how to apply and the benefits of winning one here, featuring this one of this year’s winners Merci Maman.
You can also find more information about the awards at: https://www.gov.uk/queens-awards-for-enterprise
Interviews with the winners
- Merci Maman
- Ecotile Flooring Ltd
- Fish4Dogs
- Aerospares 2000
- Dura Composites
- Laser Quantum
- Glentham Life Sciences
- Horus Music
- Suma Wholefoods
- Lumsden Design
- M Squared Lasers