Winners of the International Trade Awards 2007 Sponsored by RBS are Announced

The International Trade Awards 2007, organised by International Trade Today magazine and sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), took place at the House of Lords on Wednesday 2 April. The three overall winners were chosen from the 12 regional winners announced throughout 2007.

[ClickPress, Fri Apr 04 2008] The International Trade Awards 2007, organised by International Trade Today magazine and sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), took place at the House of Lords on Wednesday 2 April. The three overall winners were chosen from the 12 regional winners announced throughout 2007.

The event was hosted by Lord Haskel and after lunch, David Frost, Director General of the British Chamber of Commerce addressed the guests. He spoke about the importance of international trade for the UK economy and called for the Government to do more to support companies, particularly SMEs, who are driving overseas trading.

The winners were...

The SME Category Winner - Ford Farm

Ford Farm of Dorchester was the South West Regional winner. They make a variety of traditional and new cheeses and in the last three years have increased their exports from 3% to 25%. They have had significant success in the US market, a challenging market, and have marketed different products in different ways to both the East and West coast. Despite being one of the smallest entrants, Ford Farm impressed the judges with their innovative and flexible approach.

The Innovation Category Winner - Star Syringe Ltd

The South East Regional winner has saved millions of lives in the developing world. Star Syringe Ltd, of Pippingford in East Sussex, is a medical innovation company that aims to protect people through better basic healthcare products and sustainable development of those products. Their non-reusable syringe is incredibly cheap and, because it has been designed so that it can not be re-used, has played a huge part in the fight against HIV and other diseases being spread across some of the poorest countries in the developing world.

The Overall Winner of International Trade Company of the Year – GigaSat Ltd

The East of England Regional winner reviewed the vast satellite communications market looking for niches that could be exploited. They designed miniaturised systems that allow technology such as satellites and antennae to be flat packed. This completely removes the problems that usually surround transporting this kind of technology and allows a 24/7 response. Judges were particularly impressed with their “refined sales approach”, their market focused strategy and their ability to design highly sophisticated products based solely on the customers’ needs.

Simon Roberts, Director, Global Transaction Services at RBS, commented:

“The luncheon was a great success and we were proud to be a part of the celebrations. The awards recognise some fantastic UK companies that are really dedicated to international trade and the growth opportunities that it presents. Congratulations to the three winners and to all of the regional winners who have been recognised for their achievements.”

Simon Campbell, Publisher International Trade Today, said:

“The first year of the new International Trade Awards has been a great success. The judges, sponsors and our readers have been hugely impressed by the wealth of product development, innovation, design and excellent marketing displayed by all our winners. We look forward to meeting the next round of winners in the International Trade Awards 2008.”



-Ends-


For further information please contact
Claire Meeghan
Media Manager, RBS
Tel: +44 (0)20 7427 9023
Email: claire.meeghan@rbs.co.uk


Liam Austin
General Manager
International Trade Today
Tel: +44 (0)20 8144 8920
Email: liam@internationaltrade.co.uk



Notes to Editor:


The Royal Bank of Scotland Group ("RBS Group") is one of the world's leading financial services companies providing a range of retail and corporate banking, financial markets, consumer finance, insurance, and wealth management services. RBS Group operates in Europe, the US and Asia Pacific serving more than 36 million personal customers world-wide and employing more than 140,000 people. In addition to the provision of a full range of banking services under The Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest brands, RBS Group also includes Citizens Financial Group, Ulster Bank, Coutts Group, Direct Line and Churchill.


The International Trade Awards 2007, sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are the UK’s premier awards devoted exclusively to recognising excellence in international trade achievement. There were 12 monthly regional awards throughout 2007, culminating in the International Trade Awards ceremony held in London on 2nd April 2008, when regional winners competed for the title International Trade Company of the Year.


International Trade Today magazine has just celebrated its 70th anniversary as the only nationally circulated independent publication for those engaged in international trade.

For more information on the Awards visit:
http://www.internationaltradeawards.co.uk


For more information on the winners visit:
Ford Farm - http://www.internationaltrade.co.uk/justsaycheese
Star Syringe - http://www.internationaltrade.co.uk/injectinglifeintothethirdworld
Gigasat - http://www.internationaltrade.co.uk/the247gigthattourstheworld


Photo from left to right: Simon Campbell Publisher International Trade Today, John Donnithorne Sales Support Manager GigaSat, Simon Roberts Director International The Royal Bank of Scotland and Gary Moore Sales Director GigaSat.


More photos available on request.

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