HSBC Start-Up Stars Awards 2007
Yesterday evening I was fortunate enough to be invited along to the HSBC Start-up Stars Awards 2007 at the Dorchester Hotel in London.
An absolutely fantastically run black tie event with a champagne reception followed by dinner and then an awards ceremony.
The whole evening was really about some of the amazingly ambitious and so far successful companies the HSBC have backed.
The evening was kicked off by comedian Ed Byrne who i have to say looked nothing like the Bio picture in the program which must have been taken about 5 haircuts ago, but was very funny none the less.
The rest of the evening was hosted by Emma Crosby (Sky News Presenter) and Michael Wilson (Sky News Business Editor) and was split into two categories – National Finalists for the Start-up Stars Award and Finalists for the Green Award. Finalists were as follows...
Green Award Finalists ...
· SIP Build
· Red Engineering Design
· So Organic
Start-up Stars Award Finalists...
· MOMA Foods
· Blue i UK
· S.A Utilities
· Catering Academy
· Concert Live
· Igloo Thermo-Logistics
· SportStars
· Simply Coffee
· So Organic
· Rackety’s
Highlights of the nominations for me were Derek Browne (one of the Judges) commenting on how “entrepreneurship is alive in the UK” – very true! And Duncan Bannatyne and Richard Farleigh introducing Igloo Thermo-Logistics who they invested £160k in through the TV show Dragons Den . there was also a link to Concert Live who they judged on Dragons Den to “have no business”. Top tip of the day came from Gavin Wheeldon, last years winner (Applied Language Solutions ), who very wisely advised the winners this year that the Roadhouse is open til 3am! – a real pearl J
The winners were announced by Huw Morgan (Head of Business Banking for HSBC)......
Winner of the HSBC Start-UP Stars Green Award 2007:
· Red Engineering Design
Runner Up of the HSBC Start-Up Stars 2007
· Blue i UK
Winner of the HSBC Start-Up Stars 2007
· Concert Live
What an awesome acceptance speech, i have never seen so many fist pumps amidst screams of “I told you Duncan!!” “Wrong decision Mr Balantyne!”
Well done Concert Live, pretty awesome solution and a nice touch pledging the £25000 prize money to the staff. By the way, if you don’t have a Partnership with Microsoft, get in touch J.........
