Oliver is region's Plc finance director of the year

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Darren Rajanah, finance director of The Hut Group

6:43 am, February 5, 2010
Oliver is region's Plc finance director of the year

By James Chapelard

Northwich-based online retail services company The Hut Group won another accolade last night when Darren Rajanah was named young finance director of the year.

He was among the winners in the North West Finance Director Awards, which held a gala dinner at the Lowry Hotel in Salford.

The award for businesses with annual turnover of between £50m and £250m award went to Paul Berry, group finance director of Multisol Group, the Nantwich-based specialist chemical distributor.

Other Greater Manchester winners included Gordon Oliver, finance director of Radcliffe-based floorcoverings manufacturer James Halstead Plc, who took home the finance director of a Plc award after the company posted record profits last year.

Andy Bridden, finance director of Whitefield-based IT hardware distributor Gamma Global UK Ltd, received the Graeme Whittaker Entrepreneurial Award in memory of the former managing partner of Grant Thornton in Manchester, who died last year.

Jim Martin, former chief executive of N Brown Plc and now chairman of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, was given a lifetime achievement award.

More than 150 guests attended the dinner including senior figures from Iceland, JD Sports, James Halstead, Betfred, Matalan and Manchester Airport.

The winners were selected from almost 40 finalists chosen by a panel of judges from more than 200 initial nominations.

The full list of winners is:

Young Finance director of the Year – Darren Rajanah, finance director of The Hut Group;

Finance director of a business with annual turnover up to £25m – Gerald Andrews, finance director at the Arena and Convention Centre, Liverpool;

Finance director of a business with annual turnover between £25m and £50m – Chris Stephenson, finance director of Canterbury of New Zealand Limited;

Finance director of a business with annual turnover of between £50m and £250m – Paul Berry, group finance director of Multisol Group;

Finance director of a business with annual turnover of £250m – Tarsem Dhaliwal, finance director of Iceland Foods Limited;

Finance director of a Plc – Gordon Oliver, finance director of James Halstead Plc;

Graeme Whittaker Entrepreneurial Award – Andy Bridden, finance director of Gamma Global UK Ltd

Lifetime achievement award – Jim Martin, Chairman of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust.

Previous notable appointments include non executive, chairman and chief executive roles at N Brown, Redrow, Styles & Wood, Ethel Austin and Rosebys.

The panel of judges included James Cliffe from Barclays, David Grundy from Grant Thornton, Mark Halliwell from Halliwells, Chris Sharp and Simon Massey from Sharp Consultancy and last year's Lifetime Achievement Award and former Finance Director and CEO of Speedy Hire PLC, John Brown.

Chris Sharp, founder of Sharp Consultancy said: “The awards are our way of publicly acknowledging and rewarding the outstanding contribution of finance directors throughout the North West and the importance of their role to a company's ongoing success in these difficult times.”

Comments?jchapelard@crain.com