Unimed officially presented with Queen’s Award for Enterprise by Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire
Added by Love Business East Midlands | 21 February 2023
Procurement agency Unimed has been officially presented with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the category of International Trade at a ceremony hosted by the company at its Leicester office.
Unimed won the award in 2022 for its outstanding contributions in the procurement field and is celebrating achieving a significant milestone on its journey to support a healthier world.
In attendance were Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire Michael Kapur OBE, Deputy Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Susan Whelan OBE; Lord Mayor of Leicester, Councillor George Cole, and Leicestershire County Council Chairman Dr Kevin Feltham, as well as the Unimed team and their friends and family.
After a champagne reception, Shameet Thakkar, Unimed’s founder and managing director, took the Lord-Lieutenant for an introductory meeting and tour of Unimed’s offices.
This was followed by the award ceremony, at which Shameet was presented with the emblem and grant of appointment signed by the late Queen Elizabeth II and former prime minister Boris Johnson.
In his presentation speech the Lord-Lieutenant said:
“The late Queen Elizabeth II instituted the Queen’s Awards by royal warrant in 1966. These Awards will stand as a lasting legacy to her memory. The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are the most coveted awards in the UK for businesses; they are only awarded to those who are truly outstanding in their field. There were only 141 Awards given out in 2022 under the International Trade category, and only 13 of those went to businesses in the East Midlands. This puts into perspective just how rare and exceptional Unimed’s performance has been."
Since 2018, Unimed has achieved international trade growth to the tune of nearly 1700%, enabling the company to trade in Europe, Africa, South America, Asia and Oceania.
The Queen’s Award recognises the performance of a company as a whole. Everyone that works at Unimed should be proud of the company’s collective achievements and share in the honour of receiving this prestigious award. I hope it acts as a source of great pride and that it helps Unimed further promote its services across the globe.”
As a symbol of its extraordinary achievement, Unimed also received a unique glass award trophy. Each trophy is manufactured using a process in which heated glass is dipped in water to create a special cracked effect so that no two trophies are the same.
In his acceptance speech, Shameet reaffirmed the company values and goals. He said:
“Unimed’s culture is first and foremost rooted in the belief that everyone should have access to essential healthcare products, no matter their physical location in the world. We believe in changing the procurement model to operate in ways that entirely benefit those in need, an important part of which involves prioritising ethicality, transparency and reliability.”
Shameet was also keen to highlight the importance of prevention in achieving equitable access to healthcare and improving global health standards. He added:
“Healthcare procurement is not just about providing emergency supplies when disasters strike or when health crises arise, it’s also about minimising their impact, and without prevention, this becomes much more difficult. Unimed believes there is an essential need to improve access to diagnostic equipment and to prioritise prevention over treatment. Nothing is more important than strengthening health systems and increasing their resilience to protect populations. This is simply not possible without a change in mindset, and we are proud to be among those striving to drive this change.”
To learn more about Unimed Procurement Services, please visit: www.unimedps.com/
