Top business honour for entrepreneur Ian

Ilkeston businessman Ian Hodgkinson has been voted Entrepreneur of the Year in the 2009 Derbyshire Business Awards.

But the managing director has described his outstanding success in the prestigious competition as a ‘bitter-sweet affair’.

He told guests at Friday's gala awards dinner hosted by actor Brian Blessed that the honour, which rewards business excellence, came just 24 hours after his father's funeral.

“He was the man who introduced me to the building business and I am truly sorry that he did not live long enough to share in our success tonight but I want to dedicate this trophy to him,” said Ian.

His father, Brian, who died last week, has been described as “the best plasterer of his day in Ilkeston”.

Family, friends and staff were at Pride Park for the Derbyshire Chamber dinner and heard Ian praised for his entrepreneurship, innovation and business acumen.

He was also applauded as ‘a man with a strong sense of mission who is not averse to putting his name on the line when it comes to fighting the corner for the British building industry and its workers as well as a strong supporter of community charities and deserving groups’.

After receiving the trophy, Ian insisted that the business award had to be shared by every Hodgkinson employee.

He declared: “This is, genuinely, a team award. Each and every Hodgkinson employee deserves this honour. They keep turning economic challenges into business successes and it's thanks to them, Hodgkinson can continue to fight the corner for British industry and those workers who don't have the clout to fight for themselves. To us, that's important.”