A young Co Armagh woman has collected the prestigious Young Business Woman of the Year title at the 2023 Women in Business Awards.
Niamh McCarthy, from Lurgan, was among a host of Northern Ireland’s top businesswomen, celebrated for their outstanding achievements at the glitzy awards show, which welcomed a sell-out audience of more than 550 to Belfast’s Crowne Plaza Hotel on Thursday evening.
The young business person award recognises her outstanding work behind starting her own business, Niamh Designs, shortly after graduating from university.
Since the founding of her business, their revenue has increased 100% year on year and has big plans for growth in the next three years.
Niamh is a passionate advocate for women in business, loving nothing more than watching her team succeed.
This year’s Awards, now in their 11th year, brought together female entrepreneurs and businesswomen from all sectors to recognise, reward and celebrate the very best of local talent at the only ceremony of its kind in Northern Ireland.
Sponsored by Virgin Media O2 Business for the fifth consecutive year, the Awards received a record 201 submissions and honoured eighteen inspiring women and one outstanding business organisation.
The highly acclaimed Business Woman of the Year 2023 award, also sponsored by Virgin Media O2 Business, was presented to Jackie Henry, Managing Partner of People and Purpose at Deloitte UK.
Under her leadership, Jackie has grown the company from 80 people to 1,300 and in 2017 was honoured with an MBE for services to the economy, including setting up the Belfast Delivery Centre and the creation of Deloitte’s BrightStart Degree and Graduate academy programmes.
Niamh McCarthy, from Lurgan, who was awarded Young Business Woman of the Year 2023
Jo Bertram, Managing Director at Virgin Media O2 Business, said: “At Virgin Media O2 Business we are committed to championing women and their impact within the local business community, which is why we continue to be proud sponsors of the Women in Business Awards. All of tonight’s winners should be incredibly proud of their achievements which will inspire other businesswomen and accelerate the journey towards workplace gender parity.”
Women in Business Chief Executive, Roseann Kelly commented: “It is a real honour for Women in Business to bring together this group of inspiring businesswomen who have each excelled in their field and made hugely significant contributions to the business ecosystem in Northern Ireland.
“Our 11th Awards was a true showcase of the amazing talent of businesswomen locally as Women in Business continues to celebrate, encourage and inspire women to achieve their ambitions. Congratulations to all of the winners and finalists, we look forward to seeing what the future holds for you and your business.”
