The Seventh Edition of the Best Bulgarian Company of the Year Awards

The seventh edition of the prestigious Best Bulgarian Company of the Year Awards took place at a special ceremony in the Sofia Arsenal Gallery, distinguishing the most successful Bulgarian companies. The annual event is organized by First Investment Bank (Fibank) and aims not only at promoting Bulgarian business, but also at showcasing the most impressive and sustainable models of entrepreneurship as an example and source of inspiration to others.

The winners among the nearly 300 participating companies were nominated by a jury composed of: Chavdar Zlatev, Corporate Banking Director, Member of the Board and Executive Director of Fibank, Kancho Stoychev - Sociologist, President of Gallup International Association and Chairman of Made in Bulgaria Union, Emil Harsev - financier, Venelina Gocheva - publisher of 24 Hours newspaper, Lachezar Bogdanov - Managing Partner of Industry Watch, Yordan Mateev - Executive Director of the Association for Modern Trade and Vanya Manova - Manager of Mastercard for Bulgaria and Macedonia. In its evaluations, the jury was guided by criteria such as sustainable development, ability to manage a competitive environment, potential for entering new markets and innovation. All companies participating in the competition were Bulgarian-owned, had Bulgarian management and represented a Bulgarian brand.

The first prize in the Medium and Large Company category was won by Progress AD - an enterprise with a 100-year history in the production of high quality cast iron. Velpa EOOD, a manufacturer of cardboard and packaging, took the second place, and Radicom EOOD, which produces spices, starches, cereals and food mixtures, came up third.

In the Micro and Small Company category, the winner was Gadevski OOD – a furniture factory from the town of Troyan with long experience in the production of solid wood tables and chairs exported all over Europe. Runner-ups were Paliniko OOD, manufacturer of custom gearboxes, gears and various drive components, and Iveliko EOOD - a young company developing software products and services.

Mobile Systems OOD won the audience award determined by online vote. The company has been on the software application development market since 2001 and its main product, the OfficeSuite, is used by more than 300 million users worldwide.

The Most Successful Businesswoman award, introduced by Fibank organizers since last year with the purpose of encouraging female entrepreneurship in Bulgaria, went to Simona Srebranova, Manager of Simonas Cards EOOD – a leading manufacturer of access, bank and gift cards.

Among the nearly 300 nominees this year there were representatives of the furniture, textile, and machine building industries, software and telecom companies, construction, engineering and design businesses. Traditionally, a number of food and beverage manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers took part in the competition, as well as agricultural producers and transport companies.