It is the second time that Buckinghamshire-based Global Infusion Group has received the UK’s highest accolade for business success in recognition of its outstanding international trade results which have seen the company, formed 33 years ago, expand into a global operation.

GIG won its first Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2014 for international performance. Since then, it has grown overseas sales from events catering, food & beverage project management and brand support from £5.8million in 2013 to £8.56million in the year to December 2015; a 48% uplift in two years.

As a result, GIG017 has now been awarded the Queen's Award for International Trade for Outstanding Short Term Growth Award.

"Remarkable overseas growth"

Tony Laurenson, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of GIG, said: “This is another tremendous honour which recognises the fantastic efforts of all of our loyal and hard-working staff who have helped us to grow our client portfolio across the globe. It was amazing to win our first Queen’s award in 2014 and it inspired us to drive forward and build on that success rather than rest on our laurels. We have seen the business achieve remarkable overseas growth in recent years with international projects such as the European Games in Baku, corporate event catering alongside major agencies such as George P Johnson and Jack Morton now accounting for half of our overall turnover.” 

GIG’s headquarters are based in Chesham, Buckinghamshire, but the company extends to Asia, Europe, the Americas and the Middle East along with an extensive worldwide network of partners and suppliers and specialist logistics and brand support division - E2B Logistics - in Watford, Hertfordshire.  Global Infusion Group provides catering services to sectors including major sports, automotive, corporate, music, tv and film at diverse events across the globe, from Glastonbury Festival and three Olympic Games to product launches and events for Jaguar Landrover, Porsche and Michael Kors, and everything in between.

E2B Logistics provides brand support in activating events and awareness programmes for companies as wide ranging as Vita Coco and Propercorn to Little Cherry and Graze. 

As well as growing operations in The Americas and the Middle East, GIG commenced trading in China in 2010 and last year worked in seven other Asian countries and over 50 cities across China.                             

GIG has also won a host of awards over the years in recognition of the quality of its food, the excellent service provided by its staff and overall performance of the business.

Says Laurenson: “I am immensely proud of what we have achieved since I launched the business in 1984 from my father’s garage. Many of my team have been alongside me throughout most of this journey including Bonnie May, GIG’s Global Operations Director, and Mary Shelley-Smith, Global Operations Director for our tour and crew catering division, Eat to the Beat. We now employ over 120 full-time staff with around 3,000 freelancers working for us around the world. Our recent performance, and these very prestigious Queen’s Awards, demonstrate that GIG really is what our name says, a truly global catering and logistics operation!”

Off to Buckingham Palace

Tony and Mary will attend a special reception for The Queen’s Award winners at Buckingham Palace later this year.  The awards were inaugurated in 1966 as The Queen’s Award to Industry but have evolved into The Queen’s Award for Enterprise and divided into Innovation, Sustainable Development and International Trade categories.