Chamber chief wins business award

The chief executive of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) has been crowned the Young Businessperson of the Year at a major awards ceremony.

Henrietta Brealey (pictured) received the award at the 2022 Birmingham BusinessLive Awards in association with the Birmingham Post at the ICC.

Fortel, a Walsall-based employment agency which supplies staff to the construction industry across the UK, was named Company of the Year as well as winning the award for Diversity and Inclusion.

Other winners were:

Small Business of the Year
Acutec

New Business of the Year
Voilo

Professional Services Firm of the Year
Shoosmiths

Property and Construction Business of the Year
Port Loop

Third Sector Organisation of the Year
Acorns Children's Hospice

CSR Project of the Year
Martin James Network

Green Business of the Year
The Appliance Recycling Group

Young Businessperson of the Year
Henrietta Brealey, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce

Henrietta said: "Birmingham is the youngest city in Europe and home to many outstanding leaders in business. It was an honour to be shortlisted alongside such inspiring individuals and I am delighted to have won this award.

“For me, there could have been nowhere better to start and grow my career than Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. The opportunities I've had to learn from and build a network of leaders of all sectors in a supportive and entrepreneurial environment has been second to none.

“It was a particular pleasure to see many Chamber members recognised at the Birmingham Business Live Awards including Voilo, Acutec, Shoosmiths, Acorns Children 's Hospice and the Martin James Network.

“This city-region is home to an incredible array of business excellence and talent, it feels so good to be able to get back out and celebrate it in style again. ”

Birmingham Post editor Graeme Brown said: "My congratulations goes to all of our finalists and winners and especially Fortel.

"Diversity and inclusion in the business world has moved from the fringes to the heart of the conversation so perhaps it's fitting that the winner of our first ever award for D&I has also been named our overall Company of the Year.

"Our judging panel was impressed with its commitment to helping all sections of society to address a crippling skills shortage in the construction industry

“After what has been a very hard two years for the business world, it is heartening to see companies across the West Midlands continuing to recruit, thrive and innovate."

Find out more about careers at the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce here.