The Mayor's Business Awards
Hackney Today – 4th December 2006
The Mayor of Hackney's Business Awards are an annual event celebrating entrepreneurs with business acumen and innovative ideas that generate jobs across the borough. And the list of this year's winners, awarded on 14 November, illustrate the diversity of successful business ventures in the borough. From cycles to kitchens, to business ideas from 14-19 year olds, the awards demonstrate that when it comes to commerce, Hackney is vibrant and thriving.
Winner profile
Best Environmental Practice - East London Community Recycling Partnership (ELCRP) Mark Douglas, Chair, speaks on behalf of ELCRP
What inspired you to set up your business?
ELCRP was created by a small group of people who all wanted to make a change to
the borough. Only two of the original six now remain, but the demand for
recycling has grown by leaps and bounds and ELCRP along with it.
What are you most proud of about your business?
ELCRP was the first company in the UK to become fully legally compliant to deal
with food waste containing cooked meat and fish, meaning that residents don't
have to separate their food waste - not bad for a small community based organisation
based on the Nightingale Estate. We are an ethical company who hire local people
and pay above minimum wage.
What has been your biggest challenge so far?
Developing a system which stops the food waste from rotting. This means that the
bins no longer stink, and vermin are deterred.
What made you choose Hackney to set up your business? What does the
borough mean to you?
I live in Hackney as does our Project Manager and fellow founder. It was our
Project Manager who chose the Nightingale Estate. Our motivation was to improve
the living area for all inner city estate residents. Frankly if it works in
Hackney it will work anyway.
What did winning the Mayor's Business Award mean to you?
We have already won three National Awards, but to be recognised locally is in
many ways the supreme award, if only because local judges know your weak points
as well as your strengths. To be judged positively by your local peer group is
a great compliment.
What advice would you give to others wanting to succeed in their
own business?
Understanding that you can't know everything, recognise what you don't know and
build a management team that fills these gaps.