During a spectacular award show in the monumental Citrusveiling, the winners of the 37th Rotterdamse Ondernemersprijs were announced. The award for companies and entrepreneurship in the region of Rotterdam originated with the Rotterdam Chamber of Commerce and the City of Rotterdam. They set up a platform to stimulate entrepreneurship in the city.
Van Gelder Ridderkerk got the prize for best entrepreneur in the Rotterdam region. The ultramodern wholesale business in potatoes, vegetables, and fruit received the award from Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb. The company has experienced spectacular growth in recent years. It is setting the tone for sustainability. The jury report states: ‘The jury had to make a choice and this year – with a record number of applications, all of which were of an exceptionally high standard – it was not easy. This year, the choice fell on the entrepreneur who scored well on all the criteria and who is therefore a true example of pioneering entrepreneurship.” Yource and Ampelmann also got nominated.
These companies also won
The K.P. Van der Mandele Penning went to Harry Jan Bus and Rachel van Olm, founders of Theater and Werkplaats Walhalla in Rotterdam Katendrecht. The medal is a symbol of responsible entrepreneurship. It’s for a Rotterdam entrepreneur who makes a special effort for the city and its inhabitants. The accompanying cash prize of € 15,000 is traditionally donated to a good cause. Harry Jan Bus and Rachel van Olm chose to donate the money to Lorenzo Elstak’s Foundation Platform Katendrecht. “We work together with Lorenzo on a regular basis and see him as a very important player between the old and newcomers in Katendrecht. His activities in the field of art & culture, especially for children, appeal to us,” says van Olm and Bus.
The young and ambitious Current Werkt won the New Heroes Prize. This special prize is for companies that may be young and/or relatively small in size. But above all are innovative and make a positive impact on a socially relevant theme. Current Werkt is a progressive employment agency with a social mission, on the way to a more inclusive society. They help candidates with a distance to the labor market to find a job, specifically people with a detention background. Not just any temporary employment agency and their success rates are extremely high and the relapse rate exceptionally low.
