China-Scotland Business Awards 2021

About the China-Scotland Business Awards

Despite the obvious challenges, Scottish firms have been working hard over the past year to forge business partnerships with China and deliver commercial success. The China-Scotland Business Awards provide an opportunity to recognise their innovation, effort and commitment and celebrate their outstanding successes. In doing so, the awards also serve to showcase the best Scotland has to offer and to encourage other businesses and organisations to look to China as an opportunity.

In 2021, the China-Scotland Business Awards will return for the fourth year running. In these times of global uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, we would like to support the continuing trade and investment between the two countries and celebrate businesses that have achieved success despite the challenges that they have faced in 2020. Unfortunately due to the restrictions on travel this year we have regretfully decided to put on hold one of our Award categories: China Welcome of the Year. We are confident that the sector, and category, will return with vigour in 2022.

We are proud to announce that this year's awards will once again be in partnership with Scottish Development International(https://www.sdi.co.uk/) and Scottish Enterprise(https://www.scottish-enterprise.com/).

Award Categories

Exporter of the Year

Exports are at the heart of Scotland’s trading relationship with China, and an increasingly important area of development as the Chinese market develops an appetite not just for Scottish engineering and financial services, but also its food and drink. Open to companies of all sizes and all sectors, this category aims to celebrate Scottish exporters who have shown resilience and determination to get through the challenges of the past 12 months, as well as a powerful strategy for 2021 and beyond. 

Please scan the QR code below to apply:

Educational Partnership of the Year

Scotland’s education sector has been one of the most pioneering in fostering ties with China in the past few decades. The diverse projects undertaken are almost always in partnership with other organisations, forming the beating heart of innovation between our two countries. The Educational Partnership of the Year award aims to recognise excellent examples of such collaboration for the impact they have on the next generation of young people and cutting-edge research, as well as the wider Scotland-China business community.

Please scan the QR code below to apply:

Chinese Investor of the Year

Investment from China in Scotland has traditionally been in the energy sector, which is still very dominant, but in recent years the tech sector has also been a key area of activity. Investment is fundamental to the wider China-Scotland relationship and so the ‘Investor of the Year’ is awarded to inward investment that has had significant positive impact on the Scottish economy and society. 

Please scan the QR code below to apply:

Award for Climate Action

Brand new this year, the 'Award for Climate Action' has been introduced at a time when Scotland will be at the heart of global Climate Change negotiations with COP26 taking place later in 2021. China’s continued engagement in these is essential if they are to be a success. What Scottish businesses with Chinese connections have been doing to mitigate the impending climate emergency will be celebrated through this award. 

Please scan the QR code below to apply:

Entrepreneur of the Year

The ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ seeks to celebrate an outstanding individual who has shown exceptional entrepreneurship in growing their business in China and/or Scotland. Open to any entrepreneur-led business active in the Scotland-China business community, who have demonstrated resilience and creativity in facing up to the past year of challenges. 

Please scan the QR code below to apply:

How to Apply & FAQ

Click on the button below to learn how to apply and see the answers to frequently asked questions:

Previous Winners

2020

• Innovation in Education - Donghua Edinburgh Centre for Creative Industries
  

• Chinese Investor of the Year - Huawei Technologies

• Exporter of the Year - Calnex Solutions

• Entrepreneur of the Year - Rachel Jones, Snapdragon Monitoring

• China Welcome of the Year – Gretna Green

2019

• Innovation in Education - China-UK Low Carbon College
  

• Investor of the Year – Ctrip

• Exporter of the Year – Wood

• China Welcome of the Year – Rabbie’s Trail Burners

2018

• China Welcome of the Year - Liangs

• Chinese Investor of the Year - Sanpower/House of Fraser

• Exporter of the Year - Peak Scientific Instruments Ltd

• Education-Business Collaboration of the Year - The International Diabetes Centre, Shenzhen

• Special Award for Contribution to Scotland-China Relations - Bank of China

• New to China Exporter Award - Findlay Irvine Ltd

CBBC FOCUS

Interviews with Past Winners

CHINA-SCOTLAND BUSINESS AWARDS, PAST WINNER DECCI

Professor Natascha Gentz, who is Assistant Principal (China), Chair of Chinese Studies and Director of the Confucius Institute for Scotland, picked up last year’s award for Innovation in Education on behalf of of the Donghua–Edinburgh Centre for Creative Industries (DECCI)...

Please scan the QR code to read more:

HUAWEI, WINNER OF THE CHINA INVESTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD

Michael Hill-King of Huawei Technologies explains below how the Chinese tech company has been investing in Scotland since 2016. It began as a collaboration with the University of Edinburgh and eventually led to the establishment of a joint lab between the two in 2017...

Please scan the QR code to read more:

RACHEL JONES WINNER OF THE 2020 CHINA-SCOTLAND ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

Rachel Jones launched her online product monitoring company SnapDragon after discovering that products she was making with another company in China were being faked and sold online...

Please scan the QR code to read more:

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE 2021 CHINA-SCOTLAND BUSINESS AWARDS, AND A LOOK AT ONE OF THIS YEAR’S WINNERS, CALNEX

Tommy Cook is CEO of Scottish technology company Calnex, which won the 2020 Exporter of the Year Award. Calnex is a specialist technology manufacturer that produces testing equipment that allows major electronics companies to enter their products into market. Having captured something of a niche, Calnex provides solutions to all the main global electronics manufacturing companies, punching well above its weight, and is a great example of a successful Scottish exporter.

Please scan the QR code to read more:

Sponsorship

Information on sponsorship opportunities is available upon request. Please email [e-mail] or [e-mail] to learn more.

Awards Partner

Please scan the QR code below to learn more about the Scottish Development International and Scottish Enterprise:

Design Partner

Please scan the QR code below to learn more about the Red Unit:

Media Partner

Please scan the QR code below to learn more about the Caixin Global:

Upcoming Events

3rd Nov2020

10th Nov 2020

19th Nov 2020

In the News

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The China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) is the UK’s national business network promoting trade and investment with China. Since 1954 we have acted as the independent voice of business, located at the heart of the action, engaging across both countries in every sector and region. We support our members and partners by delivering the advice, analysis and access which they need in order to seize the China opportunity. Our diverse membership includes leading UK companies and universities, many of the UK’s most dynamic SMEs, and an ever increasing number of Chinese companies exporting to and investing in the UK.

英中贸易协会（CBBC）是英国促进对华贸易和投资的国家级商业贸易网络。自1954年以来，我们一直作为独立的商业声音，处在行动的核心位置参与两国在每个行业和地区的合作。为了协助我们的会员与合作伙伴更好地抓住中国的商业机遇，英中贸易协会不遗余力地为其提供所需的商业建议、解析与渠道。我们的会员包括众多英国领先的公司与知名大学、英国最具活力的中小企业，以及越来越多向英国出口和在英国投资的中国企业等。