PwC: Private Business Awards 2013

By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

The launch of the third annual Private Business Awards which were set up to celebrate the best of private business in the country and recognise its importance to the UK economy has taken place.

On receiving the award last year, Alan Blake, CEO of JCB Excavators Ltd said:

“It’s a great honour, amongst so many private businesses, to be voted Private Business of the Year. It spurs us on to achieve even greater things. We believe in family businesses as the principle wealth generator of the economy and we are proud to be at the heart of that effort.”

Private businesses are encouraged to nominate themselves for the awards, which are sponsored by PwC, in association with HSBC Private Bank and recognise excellence in areas such as technology innovation and exporting. They also recognise the diverse nature of private business with the ‘Private Business woman of the year’ award and the ‘social enterprise of the year’ award. With a recent PwC survey of family businesses showing they feel like the ‘unloved’ sector of the UK business world, the ‘Family Business of the year’ award – last year won by facilities management company OCS – goes some way to giving them the recognition they deserve.

Speaking about the awards, Ruby Parmar, partner and leader of PwC’s private business practice commented:

“Over the past three years, it’s been really inspiring to hear about the journeys private businesses have been on. We know how important private businesses are to the recovery of the UK economy. These awards celebrate those companies who have been leading the way in a difficult economic environment.

“We look forward to hearing more about the innovative ways private businesses have been navigating these turbulent times and encourage businesses to put themselves forward and tell us their story.”