Harrow company wins Coutts prize for family business

Visioncare Eye Clinic named ‘Best UK Family Business, London and Greater London Region, £1-5m turnover category’

Visioncare Eye Clinic in Harrow, was last night named ‘Best UK Family Business, London and Greater London Region’, in the £1-5m turnover category of the Coutts 2006 Prize for Family Business. The company will now go on to compete in the £1-5M category, at the national finals to be held in central London on 6 June.

The Coutts Prize for Family Business recognises the best run family businesses in England and Wales, and compliments Coutts successful Family Business Forum that is held throughout the UK. Mark Evans, Head of Family Business, Coutts & Co, commented: “With a 300 year history of working with family businesses, Coutts has a special understanding of the enormous contribution family firms make to both the economy and society, as well as the specific challenges they face.

“Now in its second year the Coutts Prize for Family Business is the only regional and national awards programme in England and Wales celebrating the overall best performing small, medium-sized and large family businesses. The interview process acts as a company health check.”

Founded in 1984 by two brothers, Bharat and Prakesh Rughani, Visioncare Eye Clinic operates optometrists and dispensing opticians advising on eye care and eye wear.  Visioncare recently achieved the IIP award, was short-listed for UK contact-lens practice of the year 2005 by Optician Magazine and has also won a prize awarded by the local Primary Care Trust.

Sir Robert Worcester regional chairman of the evaluation committee commented:

“As a successful first generation optometrists and dispensing opticians the things that impressed the evaluation committee about Visioncare Eye Clinic included:

·the use of outside mentors in reviewing the strategic direction of the business and helping to come up with new ideas;

·the use of family members who are not shareholders as advisors;

·the introduction of innovative products such as 'orthokeratology' as an alternative to laser eye surgery, and dry-eye and wet-eye clinics;

·the level of community involvement including the particular care paid to looking after older people who are housebound; and

·the approach to philanthropy including the collection and distribution of spectacles and second-hand equipment to developing countries.”

The Coutts Prize recognises firms in three categories (£1m-5m, £5m-£25m, £25m+) that demonstrate a combination of high standards of family governance and a corporate governance, a competitive market position and consistent financial growth, and a track record of charitable giving or involvement in local community. Entrants must be companies or firms where two or more family members together have control of over 25% of the voting shares and consider themselves as a family business.

More specifically, the independent evaluation committee was looking for examples of best practice including;

·ethical standards reflecting family values;

·effective planning for succession of top family management and non-family members;

·a means of returning wealth to shareholders; and

·a track record of innovation in products, services, technology and ways of doing business.

The independent evaluation committee is overseen by Sir Robert Worcester, founder and President of MORI and a Past President of the World Association for Public Opinion Research.

Sir Robert is a frequent contributor to the press, radio and television.

The evaluation committee for the London and Greater London region includes: Philip Blackwell, Chief Executive, Blackwell Ventures Ltd; Simon Bower, Managing Director, Pollards Tea and Coffee Ltd; Libby Gibson, Partner, Piper Private Equity; Victoria Hornby, Adviser, Charles Dunstone Charitable Trust; Harry Moore, Managing Director, Moore Fleming and Alastair Wilson, Chief Executive, School for Social Entrepreneurs.

Winners were given a unique family business cartoon sketch, created by renowned cartoonist, Robert Duncan, depicting some of the more light-hearted moments of running a family business, and framed by acclaimed family business and jewellery designers, Boodles. Robert Duncan, will also create a unique cartoon for each of the winners, to tell their own story.

Coutts Prize for Family Business, London and Greater London Region

Nominees and winners

Turnover £1-5m	Turnover £5-25m	Turnover £25m+
Bowling & Co	Fulton Umbrellas	Chemilines Limited
Joskos	The Goring*	Kenneth Green Associates
The NewFieldWork Co Limited	Hemming Group Limited	MLS Group
Premier Cru Fine Wines Investments Limited	Vascroft	Pharmaceuticals Direct
Visioncare Eye Clinic*		WTA International Freight Management*

*Winners.

For further media information on Coutts contact:

Jo Thorne, Regional PR Manager, Coutts & Co on 0207 957 2650 or mobile 0776 6070 859 or e-mail joanna.thorne@coutts.com

Notes to Editors

·Coutts is the international private banking arm of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is one of the world's largest banking groups.

·Coutts manages the wealth of 96,000 high net worth clients worldwide through a network of over 40 offices globally.

·The first Coutts regional office to be opened was Eton in 1961. Today, Coutts has regional offices in Bath, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Eton, Guildford, Hampshire, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford and Tunbridge Wells.

·Coutts offers clients a range of products and services covering sophisticated investment products together with expertise in trust and fiduciary services and UK tax and banking services.

·Coutts & Co is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Coutts & Co Registered in England No 36695 Registered Office 440 Strand London WC2R 0QS.

·Calls may be recorded.

www.coutts.com