The Griffin Report: Outgoing Chamber president Nasir Awan on promoting Birmingham around the world
NASIR AWAN finishes his term as president of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce this month and believes more firmly that being British is a premium asset in business internationally. But, the highly successful Birmingham businessman tells JON GRIFFIN, more backing is needed from the Government.
Outgoing Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) president Nasir Awan has made an impassioned plea for an urgent Government rethink on long-term industrial policy to help boost flagging jobs growth throughout the UK.
Nasir, the driving force behind Hockley-based Awan Marketing, one of the UK’s largest wholesale cash and carry businesses, marked the end of his two-year Presidential tenure with a stark warning that increasing overheads and rising labour costs were stifling industry.
And he called for a revival of the West Midlands manufacturing sector - including new incentives for engineering apprenticeships - to help steer the economy away from over-reliance on services.
Nasir, who came to the UK from Pakistan in 1967 aged eight with his family to join his father Bashir in Birmingham and was made an MBE for services to business and international trade in 2016, will mark his 50th year in business next year – but shows no sign of slowing down as he completes his Presidential term.
He told Chamberlink in a wide-ranging interview: “When you go around the world made in Britain is still very well respected, as is made in Birmingham. But we need support from the Government – at the moment unfortunately the only cash cow the Government seems to see is business.
“If you don’t support business you are not going to see new jobs. The Government needs to give employers a hand to create and encourage employment. Recently employers are seeing how they can reduce salaries and some of their manpower because of overheads, national insurance etc – it is very, very discouraging.
“When you talk to businesses the biggest problems are overheads and staff costs. We are the youngest city in Europe but there needs to be an incentive for employers to take on young people- this is how they get on the jobs ladder and start a life for themselves.
“We have the assets, the manpower, the knowledge, the knowhow, we have the premium of being British and being Birmingham, but we just need support and encouragement from the Government.”
Nasir, who began working life in his teens helping his father run the small family shop in Birmingham selling radios, cassettes and other electronic goods, said a long-term Governmental approach to industry was key to the future of the wealth-creating sector.
“The Government needs to sit down and analyse where we are going as a country and that reflects on all the cities. We are most concerned with Birmingham but what happens in the UK affects Birmingham as well – we can’t detach ourselves from central Government.
“The Government needs to make policies on where do we see Britain in 50 years’ time, in 20 years’ time, in 10 years’ time. My feeling is each Government comes in and they just think how can they survive the next five years. We need a long-term view, not about how they can remain in power or come back at the next election.
“I think that is short-sightedness but unfortunately that is the way politics works, which is wrong.”
Nasir, who was made deputy Lieutenant of the West Midlands in 2017 and is heavily involved in charity work including as chair of Islamic Relief Pakistan, said growth of manufacturing was vital to the UK’s economic health.
“Industry, manufacturing needs to come back. We can’t be a service economy forever because you are just rotating the same amount of money, and it is not really growing. We need to be manufacturing, we need to be exporting.
“I think that engineering needs to come back, we need to invest in more engineering apprenticeships. There are still opportunities – we have got some hi-tech and pharmaceuticals is a massive market that we can get into.”
The outgoing President, who hands over the reins to Andy Dawson, co-founder of Birmingham-based Curium Solutions, said he was proud of leading trade missions to the likes of Pakistan, Rwanda, Kenya and Sri Lanka during his two-year term.
“Every President has a theme and as an international businessman, I wanted mine to be international. I thought it was very important to put Birmingham on the map internationally – that was really my mission.
“I felt that as a Chamber we had many foreign delegations come here but we weren’t taking as many delegations to foreign shores. The Pakistan mission was very successful and the International Trade Centre in Geneva asked would I help them arrange other missions and said they would be happy to fund those missions.
“The second was a few months later to Rwanda and again that was very successful, and the third one was to Kenya. In Kenya we met with seven other African countries, including South Africa, Mauritius and Gambia.”
He said the trade missions had brought Birmingham into the spotlight in countries where the city was largely unknown. “Birmingham was not necessarily well-known in the countries that we visited but by the time we left, it was. I made sure of that. Wherever we went, I ensured that we actually engaged with the Chambers over there.”
Nasir, only the third Asian to take over as President in the Birmingham Chamber’s 212-year history, said he had been proud to serve and would continue flying the flag for the organisation as a board member. “I am still on the board for a year, I will support Andy Dawson as much as I can, and I will still carry on flying the flag for the Chamber and for Birmingham.
“In the old boardroom at the old Chamber House where you see the names going back from 1813 you see some of the big names of the city and then your name would be amongst those names which have gone down in history – that is something I was quite proud of.
“The Chamber has a history of over 200 years and that just speaks for itself. I think we should all be very proud of representing that sort of organisation.”
Meanwhile, Nasir said he was looking forward to “a few more nights at home” with his wife. “I am looking forward to seeing more of my wife Robina and my grandchildren. My sons Adam and Salman have been looking after my business while I was away.”
This article first appeared in the November 2025 edition of Chamberlink magazine.
