Welcome!

Welcome to the last edition of Diamond Magazine for 2023, packed full once again with inspiring news stories and articles from across the Gatwick Diamond Business community.

This year seems to have flown by and with Christmas fast approaching, we are once again in full swing preparing for the Gatwick Diamond Business Awards 2024 (now open for entries!)

Our front cover showcases our vibrant new colour scheme, and on page 2 you can see full details of our valued sponsors and this year’s categories. We are of course extremely grateful to our sponsors and partners for their support, and with 16 categories to choose from, there should be something for everyone!

If you haven’t entered or won before, perhaps 2024 will be your year?!

Our Member Spotlight this edition shines on Grant Georgiades, MD of The Plan Group, a family-owned insurance brokerage based in Redhill. Take a look at page 4 to read Grant’s views on the benefits of being part of the gdb community and find out which gdb event is Grant’s favourite!

And on page 8 we announce our annual gdb Re-Energise Conference, taking place in January, with details of our 4 inspirational guest speakers coming very soon! Until 1st December you can take advantage of our early bird offer, providing an excellent opportunity for you to bring colleagues and/or guests along so they can all benefit from this positive kickstart to the new year. Please get in touch if you’d like to explore the new and more affordable sponsorship opportunities currently available.

Following our AGM at the end of September we welcome some new and exciting additions to the gdb Executive Council. We are incredibly fortunate to have the support of them and our existing council members who together bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to benefit gdb and gdb members. We are particularly privileged to welcome our new Executive Council Chairwoman, Dee Mathieson, Managing Director of Elekta Limited. Her leadership and expertise will undoubtedly guide us towards new heights in the year ahead.

Next year is the 70th Anniversary of Gatwick Diamond Business, and to celebrate we are planning new and exciting opportunities for our members. We started early with the recent launch of our brand-new website and hope by now you have discovered and are enjoying the benefits and features the new website has to offer.

As this year draws to a close, I would like to thank you all for your support and commitment to gdb, and particular

thanks to those of you who have taken the time to promote gdb to your contacts, many of whom have gone on to join gdb. Our planned referral drive during December will encourage new members to join us, further enriching our business community for the benefit of everyone, so if you have any contacts who you feel could gain from being part of our membership, please let Mandi know and we will be happy to connect.

Our thanks as always to Creative Pod for the design of Diamond, and to all of you who have contributed your news, inspiring stories and advice to this edition. And a special thank you to The 80/20 Business Consultancy for sponsoring this edition and for their interesting Strategy & Execution article on page 30.

On behalf of the gdb Team, I wish you all a successful end to 2023 and a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas!

Sally Brown General Manager