Member Article

Prime Minister shares an interest in Queenâ??s Award

Newcastle-based fair trade financier Shared Interest, who received a Queen’s Award for Enterprise this week, has been celebrating their royal recognition.

The only winner for Sustainable Development in the North East, and out of 800 businesses that applied nationally, Shared Interest received the accolade for its dedication to sustainability over the last five years.

The world’s only 100 per cent fair trade lender, Shared Interest is an international organisation with its head office in the North East of England. The business functions as a co-operative, lending over £30m each year to businesses in the developing world by pooling investor funds. The organisation continues to seek further investment to help communities bring their locally grown produce and handcrafted goods into the fair trade market. Funds also help in the payment of fair wages and protect against poor working conditions.

Patricia Alexander, Shared Interest Managing Director, said: “Winning the Queen’s Award for Enterprise is not only the ultimate accolade for delivery of our mission, it will also serve to raise the profile of the continued need to finance a fairer world.

“Without our customers, members, producers, ambassadors and staff this would not be possible. How we work together is a big part of winning this award. It represents a fantastic achievement for everyone involved in Shared Interest, and most importantly it is a significant expression of our increasing investment in the fair trade market. “Looking ahead, we hope this outstanding achievement award will lead towards even further social and commercial impact in the developing world.”

Stephen Brice, Secretary, The Queen’s Awards Office, said: “Shared Interest is an outstanding example of a company that fully warrants the recognition its staff’s efforts deserve through continuous achievement in providing financial services to fair-trade producers. I hope that this Award success will help further to raise the company’s profile in the UK and abroad.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .