On behalf of the Chamber Team and Board of the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce, I extend the warmest of welcomes to Ayrshire Business Awards 2023!

Building on the success of last year’s awards dinner, we’ve made some exciting changes and we hope that this will be an even more memorable evening.

At our last awards night, we talked about Brexit, post- Covid recovery, our evolving views on the subject of climate change, King Charles’ recent accession, and the Ukraine war. Other changes were happening a great deal closer to home too, here in Ayrshire and within the Chamber, with Claire as new CEO, setting out her exciting path for the team and the membership alike.

Here in Ayrshire we have a great deal to be proud of. The Ayrshire Growth Deal and the Ayrshire Regional Economic Strategy – the vision for Ayrshire 2033 – sets out clear and ambitious objectives for everyone in Ayrshire by creating opportunities for those who want to live, work, learn and invest in the region.

The Regional Economic Strategy isn’t all about growth, but about entrepreneurship, inspiring innovation and ensuring that individuals have access to equal opportunities and resources to live a healthy, full and purposeful life where natural assets are respected and preserved.
This is a challenging but exciting ambition, and we, in the business community, have the opportunity not only to participate in this, but to drive, support and achieve it. The Chamber believes in this vision for Ayrshire and we align our efforts to deliver it.

And to the awards
We have refreshed the categories for 2023 to better align with the Ayrshire business landscape and the vision for Ayrshire. This means we have increased to 16 categories – offering a far greater opportunity for varied businesses to apply. We are delighted to report that this has indeed encouraged a far greater number of entrants, with applications having more than doubled since last year, resulting in a fantastic 49 finalists.

Hearty thanks not only the judges for their time, but also to the Chamber Team who have helped to make this happen. And, a huge thanks also goes to each and every business for submitting an entry to the awards, from start-ups, to established businesses and third sector. It’s so important that we recognise and reward businesses which are flourishing and developing in these challenging times.

Let’s all join them all in celebrating tonight.
With warm wishes for an evening of enjoyment, celebration and maybe some magic!