Five companies from across Northern Ireland and a Lisburn-based Chief Executive have been crowned winners of the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce’s ‘Chamber Awards 2013’ and will now compete with fellow regional winners from Chambers of Commerce across the UK in the national finals as they seek to win a top UK business accolade.

Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce has announced the five firms – Anaconda Equipment International, Core Systems, ShredBank, Workspace Group and Whiterock Capital – along with Marie Marin, Chief Executive Officer of Social Enterprise Employers For Childcare Charitable Group (EFCCG), as the Northern Ireland winners in their respective categories of the ‘Chamber Awards 2013’.

The national winners will be announced at a ceremony at the Chamber Awards Gala Dinner on 28 November 2013 at the Brewery in London. Each of the successful Northern Ireland companies could also pick up the Award for Outstanding Business Achievement – with a £25,000 cash prize courtesy of the RBS Group.

Ann McGregor MBE, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce (NICC) said:
“Northern Ireland firms have surpassed themselves with the outstandingly high calibre of entries to the Chamber Awards. The high standards are a testament to the dedication and ingenuity of the local business community under challenging conditions. Each of our winners can go into the UK finals with a great sense of pride in what they have achieved to date and can be confident of success on the UK stage – we wish them all well.”

Nora Senior, President of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said:
“I visit businesses up and down the country and am constantly impressed by their determination, innovation and the contributions they are making to their local communities. Many of them are optimistic and looking for opportunities to grow and find new markets for their products and services both at home and abroad. These are the kinds of businesses that will become the wealth creators of tomorrow, and will play a crucial role in helping the UK economy move from being good, to being great in the months and years ahead.”

Carryduff based ShredBank picked up two Northern Ireland prizes – Commitment to People Development and Marketing Campaign of the Year – while Core Systems won the Exporter of the Year Award and Whiterock Capital claimed the Most Promising New Business title.

The Workspace Group won the Northern Ireland Sustainability Award; Anaconda Equipment International won the Excellence in Innovation Award while Marie Marin, Chief Executive Officer of Employers For Childcare Charitable Group, was awarded Northern Ireland’s Outstanding Personal Achievement.

Highly Commended Awards were also claimed by Anaconda Equipment International (Exporter of the Year), BRC Partnership (Commitment to People Development), Team Solutionz (Excellence in Innovation) and National Museums/Visit Belfast (Marketing Campaign of the Year).

Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce has also been shortlisted for an ‘Excellence in Membership Services Award’ in a special Chamber of Commerce category where 53 UK-wide Chambers compete for recognition as the Chamber that is most committed to customer service and adding value to members.

The 2013 Chamber Awards for Northern Ireland feature a number of high profile judges including representatives from BDO, BT, Danske Bank and Parity Talent Management.

The full list of winners is as follows:
• Exporter of the Year – Core Systems
• Commitment to People Development – ShredBank
• Excellence in Innovation – Anaconda Equipment International
• Most Promising New Business – Whiterock Capital
• Outstanding Personal Achievement – Marie Marin, Chief Executive Officer, Employers For Childcare Charitable Group
• The Sustainability Award – The Workspace Group
• Marketing Campaign on the Year – ShredBank

Highly Commended:
• Exporter of the Year – Anaconda Equipment International
• Commitment to People Development – BRC Partnership
• Excellence in Innovation – Team Solutionz
• Marketing Campaign on the Year – National Museums and Visit Belfast