JUDGE’S NAME Lord Dolar Popat
The King's Award recognise and reward those companies that act on the opportunities, make the jump and take the risk
CATEGORY International Trade
AREA OF INTEREST SMEs, Exporting, Commonwealth and Africa
Born in Uganda, Dolar Popat came to the UK as a 17-year-old refugee in 1971. After putting himself through night school at Kilburn Polytechnic, the aspiring young man man became an accountant, eventually setting up a business specialising in business and corporate finance and enjoying a successful 30-year career in the private sector. Now a Conservative Peer, Dolar has been the UK Trade Envoy for Rwanda and Uganda since 2016. As a Member of the House of Lords for more than ten years, he cites the Commonwealth (especially Africa and India) and small business issues as his main interests within the House. Elsewhere Lord Popat has served as Minister of the Crown with responsibilities for the Departments for Business, Innovation and Skills, and Transport.
WHAT MADE YOU CHOOSE TO BE A JUDGE FOR THE KING'S AWARDS? Given my background in business, I had first-hand experience of the challenges SMEs face in promoting enterprise and exporting, particularly when it comes to accessing markets and mustering the finance to do so. Exporting is my biggest political passion and a subject of great importance. I have always been passionate about doing business and I felt I was therefore best placed to be a judge, not only to select winners but to support and empower other businesses to reach their goals. WHY DO THE KING'S AWARDS MATTER TO BUSINESS? The King's Award for Enterprise is a wonderful way of recognising the achievements of exporters while promoting the immense value of becoming an exporting nation. I have lamented many times before in the Lords that our exports base has languished for far too long. As a country, we export in the region of 10%. Compare that to Germany, whose exports account for 30% of GDP and you get a sense of the challenge before us. WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT BEING A KA JUDGE? We reviewed hundreds of applications; many of them have created the most amazing products that can literally change people’s lives. Others have developed marketing and export strategies that are unique and generate huge amounts of business. WHAT SPARKS YOUR INTEREST ACROSS KING'S AWARD APPLICANTS THIS YEAR? In this year’s Awards, a record number of shortlisted companies were successfully engaged in such markets as Ghana, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Botswana, Honduras, Peru, Mauritania and the DRC - markets that have been overlooked for far too long.
WHAT’S YOUR TOP TIP FOR A COMPANY THAT IS THINKING OF APPLYING FOR A KING'S AWARD? Our task is twofold: first, we must continue to grow our exports base so that we can compete in a post-Brexit economy. And second, we need to alter businesses’ perceptions of emerging markets. DESCRIBE THE BENEFITS OF BEING A KING'S AWARDS WINNER, AS YOU SEE IT The King's Award is one of the highest accolades a British business can get. It can give a business a tremendous boost in being recognised as a trailblazer in their field. However, it is not just about winning. We also try to make the selection process as innovative as possible in order to make British businesses become more outward looking and help with increasing exporting. DESCRIBE A FEW FEATURES YOU BELIEVE MAKE BRITISH BUSINESSES SUCH A GLOBAL SUCCESS The King's Award recognise and reward those companies that act on opportunities, make the jump and take the risk - be it in Africa, South America, South East Asia and indeed the rest of the world. We must continue to spread the word, set the example and raise the bar for the export ambitions our future depends on. ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO ADD… I have always believed that Britain has run a balance of payments deficit for decades. Quite simply, we do not export enough to pay for our imports. This is neither desirable nor sustainable, yet it receives very little attention or coverage in the media. The King's Award not only addresses these challenges but recognises those companies which are striving to export and connect with new markets, particularly post-Brexit.
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