St Giles
On Tuesday 8th September we hosted a Gala Dinner for 250 guests at the Grand Connaught Rooms in London to celebrate our 60th Anniversary and to receive a prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade.
At the Gala Dinner, a formal ceremony took place during which Royal Representative, Wing Commander Mike Dudgeon, Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London, presented Mark Lindsay with a crystal bowl and scroll on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen.
This presentation ceremony was followed by moving speeches from Mark Lindsay, his daughter Hannah Lindsay and his father – and founder of St Giles – Paul Lindsay. During his speech, Mark Lindsay thanked all the staff, students, agents, family and friends that have supported the company since its beginnings: ‘I’ve enjoyed working with so many different people over the years and have grown fond of many of them.’ Paul Lindsay followed by expressing his gratitude towards his son and granddaughter for continuing to build on the company’s success, and pointed out that only around 12% of family businesses today survive into the third generation.
Hannah, the Group’s Sales & Marketing Director, summed up this special occasion nicely: ‘We are delighted to win this very prestigious award in our 60th year; it is a fantastic mark of how far we’ve come during this time. With our long history behind us, we feel it is important to learn and adapt so that we continue to meet the needs of our students and agents around the world, and this award is a great sign that we are continuing to do this.’
Thank you to our partners, students, staff, friends and colleagues for the support they have given us over the 60 years!