Hope chairman scoops Institute of Directors award

Amit Bhatia crowned joint Young Director of the Year for London and the South East

AMIT Bhatia, chairman of Hope Construction Materials, has been crowned Young Director of the Year for London and the South East alongside Ross Williams, CEO of Global Personals, at the Institute of Director’s (IoD) Director of the Year awards.

The London-based businessman, who has a string of entrepreneurial successes to his name, fought off stiff competition from a number of high-profile nominees to claim the joint accolade.

The regional awards, held last night (11 June) at the IoD’s London headquarters, saw the culmination of hundreds of nominations, with Mr Bhatia jointly winning the coveted award. He will now go through to the national final, to be held in London on 24 October.

Mr Bhatia (pictured) founded Hope Construction Materials, the UK’s leading independent supplier of concrete, cement, aggregates and asphalt, in January 2013, becoming the first new nationwide entrant into the construction industry for more than a decade.

He leads a workforce of more than 900 employees, working across in excess of 180 plants spread across Britain. His ability to unite this workforce and produce a positive first 18 months for the business from a standing start, was cited as one of the main reasons behind his success.

Mr Bhatia also has a string of entrepreneurial successes to his name including launching investment fund Swordfish Investments, as well as being the vice-chairman and co-owner of Queen’s Park Rangers Football Club.

He said: ‘It was a bold move launching Hope Construction Materials into an industry with five large incumbents who hadn’t been challenged for more than a decade, however we’ve had a strong first 18 months. Jointly winning this award is great recognition of this – especially with the wealth of entrepreneurial talent in the region.

‘I launched my first business as a teenager and enterprise is something I have always been passionate about. I look forward to the national final of the awards later this year.’

Rodger Broad, director of the IoD South, said: ‘Our winners represent the very best attributes of the region’s business community. They are driven, successful and an example to all who seek to succeed in commerce.

‘Given the record number of nominations we received this year, to win through is a tremendous achievement for Amit, and reflects well on him, his company and his staff.’