small business awards
The LDC Top 50 2020 - Champions of Ambition
The LDC Top 50 Award Winners - revealed!
Watch our editor-in-residence Rebecca Burn-Callander as she reveals the individual award winners for this year’s Top 50, including the highly coveted Most Ambitious Business Leader award. These individuals wowed our expert panel of judges across several categories, including resilience, innovation, making a difference and international ambition.
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The Most Ambitious Business Leader
Fokhrul Islam
CEO, Global Procurement Group (GPG) – UK trading arm Northern Gas and Power (NGP)
The Most Ambitious Business Leader of 2020 is Fokhrul Islam, CEO of Global Procurement Group (GPG), with its UK trading arm Northern Gas and Power (NGP). In under a decade, he has built a global group of companies. He impressed the judges with his energy procurement and management platform, which is generating international traction and helping 20,000 customers of all sizes reduce their energy consumption. If there's one person in this year’s Top 50 that personifies ambition, it's Fokhrul Islam.
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Award for International Expansion
Marisa Hordern
Founder, Missoma
Marisa Hordern, Founder of Missoma, wins the International Expansion award for her ambitious international outlook and track record for growth in exports. Missoma sells “demi-fine” jewellery – priced between £50 and £350 – direct to consumers online. The judges praised her success in foreign markets, including China. Last year, exports rose almost 350pc.
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Award for Resilience
Brigitte Read
Founder, Snag
Resilience is a required trait during a pandemic and Brigitte Read epitomises just that. Her inclusive tights business, Snag, ran into difficulty during lockdown. But Brigitte dug in and her loyal customers supported the business, with 2020 now set to be its best year yet. Today, the brand boasts 1m customers worldwide and is outselling every rival except M&S and Primark in the UK.
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Award for Innovation
Dr Graeme Malcolm OBE
Founder and CEO, M Squared
Dr Graeme Malcolm OBE was difficult to beat in our Innovation category. He created M Squared to create the world’s purest light, which he’s now using to tackle some of the world’s most pressing problems, from killing coronavirus to helping track climate change. The judges labelled Graeme a ‘true innovator’. He not only has the ideas and the vision, he has proved he can execute: the ultimate test for any innovator.
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Making A Difference Award
Nick Hynes
CEO, Somo
The Making a Difference award goes to Nick Hynes of digital transformation specialist Somo. Many entrepreneurs care about giving back but Nick has made it his mission in life. Whether it's his work founding a digital board for the NSPCC, or his partnership with The Prince's Trust to provide advice, mentoring and encouragement, Nick has consistently made a difference to so many young people during his career.
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Highly Commended – Ones to Watch
Pippa Begg & Jennifer Sundberg
Co-Chief Executives, Board Intelligence
The judges chose Jennifer Sundberg and Pippa Begg, Co-CEOs of Board Intelligence for the Highly Commended One To Watch award, the leaders destined for great things. They are changing the game on how boards operate, providing products and services to help unlock board potential. They have already quadrupled their client roster in three years.
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Rising Star
Maxine Laceby
Founder and CEO, Absolute Collagen
Maxine Laceby, Founder of supplement business Absolute Collagen, is named a Rising Star by our judges. She has achieved extraordinary growth in a fast-expanding segment of the beauty market, and the judges love the passion of her army of fans, the Absoluters.
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Rising Star
Rachel Pendered
Co-Founder and Managing Director, Media Zoo
The judges also selected Rachel Pendered, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Media Zoo, as a Rising Star. She is a hugely talented entrepreneur carving out a niche for herself in the creative communications industry and we can’t wait to see what she achieves in the coming years.
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Rising Star
Cassandra Stavrou MBE
Founder, Proper Snacks
Cassandra Stavrou, Founder of health snack brand Proper Snacks is succeeding in an intensely competitive and crowded space. The judges believe Proper Snacks could be one of the super brands of tomorrow which is why Cassandra has been recognised as a Rising Star.
Read moreMeet The LDC Top 50
This year’s Top 50 business leaders have defied the odds in the face of extreme adversity. They hail from every corner of the country and collectively contribute more than £1bn to the UK economy, employing more than 5,250 people. Find out more about our 2020 programme and meet the LDC Top 50 and Ones to Watch for 2020.
Watch the video Highly Commended – Ones to Watch
Pippa Begg & Jennifer Sundberg
Co-Chief Executives, Board Intelligence
The judges chose Jennifer Sundberg and Pippa Begg, Co-CEOs of Board Intelligence for the Highly Commended One To Watch award, the leaders destined for great things. They are changing the game on how boards operate, providing products and services to help unlock board potential. They have already quadrupled their client roster in three years.
Jane AsscherOliver Breach, James D Marshall & David Mullett
Founders, Pupil
Iain McClune
Founder, Whisky Auctioneer
Top 50 news
Read more
LDC extends deadline for UK’s Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders Awards to 31 May
3 May 2022
‘Future Facing’ – Winner of The LDC Top 50 award for Innovation 2021 features in The Times
5 Apr 2022
‘Wonky Is Beautiful’ – The UK’s Most Ambitious Business Leader of 2021 features in The Times
16 Mar 2022
LDC launches search to find the UK’s Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders in 2022
8 Mar 2022
