Stan's Cafe wins top prize at Creative City Awards
Dec 1 2008 by Anna Blackaby, Creative Industries Editor
employees and wanted to commend him on businesses performance,” the judges said.
The Outstanding Business Development (Regional) Award went to Digital Native Academy (DNA), an interactive digital media company that specialises in entertainment and serious games.
The judges said DNA’s network of contacts, its membership of the region’s Interactive Digital Media Group, and close collaboration with the region’s universities had meant the firm had been able to focus its business development activities more precisely.
“Digital Native Academy is quite a special company - they have achieved significant growth in a short space of time, a remarkable achievement considering they were only formed two years ago,” Ms Alderson said.
Fierce Earth, organisers of the Fierce! Festival, took home the outstanding market development award
The judging panel pointed to the company’s in-depth research, development of new marketing strategies and the new routes it had found into the performing sector.
Ms Alderson said: “Fierce Earth represents Birmingham’s creative industries internationally as they are held in high regards across Europe as digital media pioneers.
“They continue to use innovative marketing tactics that will, no doubt, mean many other awards will be coming their way in the future.”
Because this was such a closely-fought category the judging panel felt it was unfair not to recognise the achievements of the runner up in this category and presented a Special Achievement Award to the runner-up D A Recordings.
Ms Alderson said: “They do such good work in the highly competitive online music industry, it was impossible to over look them.”
IE, an interactive, brand and design firm based in the Jewellery Quarter, scooped the title Best Brand Award and received recognition from the judges for its strong core brand values.
“IE is unique in as much as the bulk of their clients have been with them for as long as a decade,” said Ms Alderson.
“They can also boast that no member staff has ever left the company to join another design agency. The time and effort they put into staff morale is wonderful example to all companies big or small.”
