Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Winners of Highlands and Islands Business Excellence Awards revealed

There was a record number of entries for the awards which celebrate interesting and successful businesses in the area.

The winners of the 2024 Prosper Highlands and Islands Excellence Awards, alongside Rory Bremner. Image: Abermedia
The winners of the 2024 Prosper Highlands and Islands Excellence Awards, alongside Rory Bremner. Image: Abermedia

The winners of Prosper’s Highlands and Islands Business Excellence Awards 2024 have been revealed.

Judges narrowed down a shortlist of 28 finalists to pick the winners in each of the 10 categories.

Almost 300 people attended the event at the Drumossie Hotel in Inverness.

Thursday night’s event was hosted by impressionist and comedian Rory Bremner.

Prosper said its awards, which have been running for 24 years, aim to showcase the “diverse nature” of businesses in the region and their contribution to Scotland’s economy.

Record number of nominees for 24th year of awards

Prosper regional manager for the Highlands and Islands, Grant Campbell, said this year saw a record breaking number of nominations.

He said: “The winners and finalists showcase the diverse nature of businesses in the Highlands and Islands and their contribution to Scotland’s economy.

“With a record number of nominations, our judging panel were really impressed to hear about the work that is taking place across the region.

“And inspired by so many businesses, who are truly putting purpose at the heart of their operations.  A big congratulations to the winners.”

Roy MacGregor picked up the Prosper award for outstanding contribution to the regional economy.

Ross County chairman Roy MacGregor.
Ross County chairman Roy MacGregor. Image: SNS

Mr MacGregor is chairman for Global Energy Group as well as Dingwall football club Ross County.

Meanwhile, Invergordon whisky firm Whyte and Mackay picked up a double on the night.

The distillery won both excellence in natural capital, climate change and sustainable communities and excellence in local supply chain.

Highland BlindCraft Beds picked up top spot in excellence in customer service, care & experience.

The Inverness business provides work for people with a range of disabilities and is looking to future-proof itself.

Highlands and Islands Business Excellence Awards winners

The winners are:

Outstanding island business

  • The West Harris Trust

Excellence in international business

  • The TEFL Org

Outstanding supporter of coastal communities

  • Kishorn Port Ltd
Kishorn Port has been involved in a number of recent activities, including the decommissioning of an oil rig. Image: Kishorn Port Ltd

Purposeful business

  • New Start Highland

Excellence in customer service, care & experience

  • Highland BlindCraft Beds

Excellence in natural capital, climate change and sustainable communities

  • Whyte and Mackay
Whyte & Mackay Invergordon distillery.
Whyte & Mackay picked up two awards on the night to take back to its Invergordon distillery. Image: Whyte & Mackay

Excellence in innovation

  • The Ledge SCIO

Excellence in local supply chain

  • Whyte and Mackay

Outstanding business leader

  • Rob Barlow – Hebrides Cruises

Prosper Award for Outstanding contribution to the regional economy

  • Roy MacGregor

Conversation