23-year-old takes top prize at 2018 LinkT awards

Rosemary van der Velden. Supplied image.

A property management business grown by a 23-year-old has taken out the title of Young Business Owner of the year at the 2018 Young Read Woudberg LinkT Awards.

The Tauranga Chamber of Commerce and Nico de Jong, chair of LinkT Young People in Business, are delighted to announce the winners of this year's awards.

Nico says the winner of the headline award, the Young Read Woudberg Business Owner, is Rosemary van der Velden, of Rentlink.

'Rosemary blew the judges away with her commitment to business and her success at such a young age,” says Nico.

'She entered the awards last year and has since taken advice she's received and put in real time to grow her business – increasing her client base by 51 per cent in the last 12 months.

'Rentlink is growing exponentially year on year, introducing technology to keep both property owners and tenants informed and Rosemary has plans to move into the commercial sector in time.

'We are convinced she is a very impressive young business owner who has a great future.”

Nico says the judges were very impressed with the standard of entries, including three entrants in their early 20s.

'For each of those young entrants they are showing considerable business growth, and ambition to be successful, not just in a financial metric but with their values and philosophy towards business.

'They have all made a decision to run their businesses here in the Bay, which will in time contribute hugely to the local economy. The judges felt that each of the winners would in their own way make their mark locally.”

The winner of the Holland Becket Law Young Employee of the Year is Cameron Russell from Cooney Lees Morgan. What impressed the judges was Cameron's commitment to his role, his passion for his clients, and his attitude towards his colleagues. Cameron has a long history in property and development.

The winner of the Archistudio Social and Environmental Award is Adam Taylor Architecture. The judges loved the way the business considers all things sustainable as the norm, and the approach that there is, and should be, no need to 'sell” sustainability. Owners Adam and Jamee not only design in a sustainable manner, but live and breathe it.

The D & B Construction Employer of the Year is Exceed Franchise. The judges took some time to come to this decision as all four finalists were strong employers, but Exceed's philosophy towards its employees stood out, said the judges.

They actively employee young people and see real benefit in young staff's ability to add value in modern operating environments. They work hard to develop their young employees including having a healthy personal development allowance.

The winner of the Cooney Lees Morgan Young Innovator of the Year award is Mila Arena from V on Wheels. Mila is relatively new into business, but saw a gap for pre-made, vegan meals delivered to your home, and so began V on Wheels. The judges were impressed with Mila's approach to health and wellness.

Young Read Woudberg partner, Eric Woudberg, congratulations the Awards winners.

'As proud supporters of the Young Read Woudberg LinkT Awards and Ball 2018, we are delighted to help with a programme that inspires young professionals to strive for and celebrate success.

'We're sure this is a stepping stone to even greater business success for this year's winners.”

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