To Visit the Official ABDN 2010 12th Annual Dinner & Business Awards Post Event Website click here.

ABDN 2010 The 12th Annual Dinner and Business Awards, held at the prestigious Royal Armouries on the 1st April was an exuberant, glamorous and roaring success showcasing the stunning and visual Breaking Barriers theme highlighting how barriers have been broken in business and society. The evening of awards and entertainment was followed by an exclusive after-party held in the Events suite at Alea Casino.

The showcase event was the biggest ever attracting nearly 850 guests from the business community the UK , including representatives from Business Link, UK Trade and Industry, Institute of Directors, Jaguar, PWC, High Street Banks, Solicitors and Accountancy firms providing a range of networking opportunities at the highest level.

Hosted by Shazia Mirza, the award winning Asian comedienne and dance
medleys from KSPARK gave the evening an eclectic mix of comedy and
entertainment.

The main highlight of the evening was the unique theme of ‘Breaking Barriers’ which the audience found inspirational and captivating. The spectacular audio-visual display with ground breaking videos shown on the night highlighted case studies of businesses and individuals breaking barriers and gave the audience great examples of how to improve their business or lifestyle. To reaffirm how further barriers were broken, more than a third of those shortlisted for awards were women, along with four of the five judges on the judging panel.

ABDN Chairman, Arshad Chaudhry said on the evening, "Tonight is not only a celebration of business achievement; it is much more than that. It is a celebration of the beautiful tapestry of colour woven together which makes Britain what it is today. A vibrant and diverse nation. It is so important that we must strive to preserve the great attributes of our nation – the attributes of tolerance, justice and fairness."

Inspirational speeches by Julie Meyer, CEO of Ariadne Capital an online Dragon, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and Social Action and Tony Pedder Chair of Business Link Yorkshire set the scene for the biggest and most inspirational business event in the country. Other key guests included the Lord Lieutenant Dr Ingrid Roscoe, MP’s Fabian Hamilton and Greg Mulholland, Terry Hodgkinson Chair Yorkshire Forward and The Lord Mayor of Leeds. Nearly £3300 was raised for the DEC Haiti Appeal, which was the chosen charity this year that supports the Haitian people to rebuild their lives providing medical care, food and water.

Award Winners on the evening were:

Breaking Barriers Lifetime Achievement Award - Mohammed Aslam MBE from Aagrah

Business of the Year - Mumtaz Ventures Ltd

SME Business of the Year - Squarefoot Apartments

Young Entrepreneur of the Year - Manni Hussain of Cubic Acquisitions LTD

Best Company to Work For - PEC Building and Shop fitting

Going Green - JTM Service Ltd

Female Entrepreneur of the Year (Supported by Sharing the Success) - Farina Tayub from Caremark Leeds

Most Promising New Business (Supported by Sharing the Success) - TREE

Service to the Community - Jagmohani Manku from Milun Women’s Centre