Finalists announced for the Scottish Asian Business Awards 2009

Nov. 4, 2009 - PRLog -- Guests include: First Minister, Alex Salmond; Secretary of State for Scotland, Jim Murphy; Baroness Sayeeda Warsi; Charan Gill.

Finalist shortlist (additional information available on request)

Young Achiever(s) of the Year finalists:

Azeem Arshad (Baguette Express). Azeem, 23, has two Baguette Express outlets in Glasgow with a number in the pipeline. Over the summer of 2009 he completed a deal to become the Master Franchisee for Baguette Express in the North East England

Bobby & Preet Sandhu (Happy Lets). Husband-and-wife (27 and 26 respectively) team, Bobby and Preet, manage a £60million property portfolio across Glasgow and Lanarkshire and are currently embarking on an expansion drive to increase their portfolio from 800 to 5000 properties within five years.  

Shriram Shrikumar (Kraya). Shriram Shrikumar, 28, is the owner and Managing Director of Edinburgh based Digital Technology Company, Kraya. Shriram began building websites in his bedroom at 18; a decade later Kraya employs 22 staff and has a projected annual turnover for 2009 of £720k.

Small Business of the Year finalists:

Lets Direct established in 1989 is one of Glasgow's oldest and largest professional Property Management Firms.  Multinational teams in the UK and the UAE ensure the process of letting property is dealt with promptly effectively and professionally
   
Strawberry Gardens established in 1990 in Pollokshields, opened their second branch in August 2009 on Maxwell Road, Glasgow. Strawberry Gardens is the largest and biggest provider of Asian foods in Scotland employing over 25 people.

Splash established their flagship branch in Dalmarnock back in August 2007 offering Splash Autocare – simple washes through to full valets. Two years later and there are five Splash branches across Glasgow with several more in the pipeline for 2010.

Business of the Year finalists:

Little Einstein’s – Deepak Poddar. Little Einstein’s nurseries are in the top five chains in Scotland, providing care for over 750 children per day, with 7 sites throughout Scotland. The group now employs more than 250 people across Scotland and has a turnover in excess of £5m.

Nisha’s Enterprises – Supinder Puhuja. Based in Livingston, Nisha’s initially started as a food packaging business specialising in confectionery, ethnic snacks and nuts. Recently the company acquired Golden Cross snacks which manufactures corn snacks and now distribute all over the UK & Europe.

Scottish Centre for Excellence in Dentistry – Arshad Ali. The Scottish Centre for Excellence was unveiled in April 2009. The £3m, 7240 sq ft surgery has been shortlisted in the prestigious Private Dentistry Awards held in London for two categories. The practice has 37 members of staff and had a turnover of £2.8m in the last financial year.

Franchisee of the Year finalists:

Azeem Arshad – Baguette Express. Azeem, 23, has two Baguette Express outlets in Glasgow with a number in the pipeline. Over the summer of 2009 he completed a deal to become the Master Franchisee for Baguette Express in the North East England

Nabeed Ramzan – Subway. Nabeed, a Subway franchisee, has two stores in Scotland. He was honoured with the chain’s title of ‘Franchisee of the Year for the UK and Ireland’ in 2007 for his stores’ exceptional sales performance, community involvement and efforts to build the brand.

Ishaq Khan – Chicken Cottage. Ishaq, 35, has been in the fast food business for 10 years. In early 2009 he took over the Chicken Cottage on Victoria Road, Glasgow. Shortly afterwards a unit in Shawlands was taken over and the Chicken Cottage Southside territory was purchased.

Community Award finalists:

Glasgow The Caring City established in 1999 providing Humanitarian Relief to those made homeless by the wars raging cross the Balkans. For every disaster and relief effort over the past decade Glasgow the Caring City has responded.

Mr & Mrs Poddar purchased Little Cumbrae off the west coast of Scotland to establish the first five star Pranayam Yog and Ayurved medicine retreat outside Indian. The Poddar’s run the UK branch of the Patanjali Yog Peeth Trust, a registered charity and sister organisation to Guru Swami Ramdev’s Indian organisation, to which they have pledged the use of the island.

Nari Kallyan Shangho (NKS) is a health and welfare organisation, established in 1987, that works to improve the health and well-being of South Asian women and children living in Edinburgh.  

Businesswoman of the Year finalists:

Jinder Padda (Rebel Rouge) has successfully run many prestigious establishments including the Elms Court Hotel and the Balbirs restaurant chain. Her current projects include Rebel Rouge, a hair and beauty salon, based in the heart of Glasgow

Poonam Gupta (PG PAPER). In 2003 Poonam started PG Paper Company Ltd. PG Paper actively seeks solutions to industrial waste problems and has secured many business partnerships around the world. In 2008-09, turnover almost doubled to more than £10 million, despite the challenging economic conditions; turnover is expected to grow a further 50% in the next two years.

Sarah Ali Khalid  (Honey Boutique), Sarah has exhibited an entrepreneurial streak from her high school days when she sold her father’s knitwear to fellow pupils. After a year of research and planning she set up Honey Boutique early this summer with the help of business gateway and Scottish Enterprise.

Businessman of the Year finalists:

Arshad Ali (Scottish Centre for Excellence in Dentistry). The Scottish Centre for Excellence was unveiled in April 2009. The £3m, 7240 sq ft surgery has been shortlisted in the prestigious Private Dentistry Awards held in London for two categories. The practice has 37 members of staff and had a turnover of £2.8m in the last financial year.

Puneet Gupta (PG PAPER). Whilst working full-time Puneet spent his evenings and weekends working with his wife, Poonam, growing PG Paper Company Ltd. In 2005, with his wife expecting their first child, Puneet joined the company full-time. His presence allowed them to seize upon new opportunities and turnover doubled immediately. In 2008-09, turnover almost doubled to more than £10 million, despite the challenging economic conditions; turnover is expected to grow a further 50% in the next two years.

Shaf Rasul (e-NET). In 1999 Shaf Rasul was already a self made millionaire with an extensive investment portfolio. It was at that time Rasul – who was recently named as one of two new Dragons in an online version of the BBC’s Dragons Den – established E-Net Computers. Ten years on the business is now the largest storage media distributor in Europe and one the biggest buyers of optical storage products in the world. Rasul has also developed a venture capital investment portfolio which focuses on property, asset management and internet technology.

Entrepreneur of the Year finalists:

Deepak Poddar – Little Einstein’s. Little Einstein’s nurseries are in the top five chains in Scotland, providing care for over 750 children per day, with 7 sites throughout Scotland. The group now employs more than 250 people across Scotland and has a turnover in excess of £5m.

Yasmin Khanum – DPI Investments. Five years ago, Yasmin started DPI Investments, which provides high net worth clients with a start-to-finish service with their overseas investments. DPI offers a vehicle that allows individual investors to have a guaranteed exit strategy when investing in larger products in the UAE or other desired areas.

Lifetime Achievement Award: winner to be announced on the night


Ends

For more information regarding the event contact campaign manager Faiza Amjid on 0141 243 2848 or email Faiza@oceanicconsulting.co.uk.

For press information contact Angie Bennett on 0141 243 2848 or email angie@oceanicgroup.co.uk

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