All change at this year’s AGM

This year’s Members’ Weekend, hosted by Network Veka in Warwick, attracted more than 240 attendees in the organisation’s 21st year.

The day kicked off with a specially built Business Centre, where members could chat to various supporting companies and affiliate partners about how they could work together.

The afternoon’s speeches began with MD of The Veka UK Group Dave Jones, who discussed the many ways the network has grown in recent years, and continues to grow. Finance director Graham Fitton took the audience through Network Veka’s accounts over the past year, before marketing director Dawn Stockell unveiled some major changes being launched for Network Veka’s branding going forward.

“Network Veka is the jewel in the crown of the Veka brand portfolio – the brand that stands for trust, not only to us all but also to our consumers,” Dave said. “The futures of Veka and Network Veka are more entwined than ever before; neither will succeed as fully as we expect without the other. For all the work and investment we have coming through, what remains unchanged is that the most important assets Network Veka has, are sat in this room.”

This year’s Gala Dinner and Awards was a black-tie event, with a twist. The celebrations kicked off with a Champagne reception, and a Bavarian theme ensured that the atmosphere was fun and the beer was flowing.

This year’s Awards were recategorised for the first time, now being judged on company size rather than region. This meant that members were competing against comparable companies up and down the country, not only those in their own area.

Trophies were presented by Veka’s head of partner programmes Karen Lund and six-times World Snooker champion Steve Davis, who steps down as brand ambassador this year, after 11 years representing Network Veka.

Category winners based on customer satisfaction scores:
£1.5m+ – Thistle Windows and Conservatories

£1-1.5m – Goliath HomeWorld

£750K-1m – Shane Howells

£500K-750K – MG Windows

£250K-500K – Ffenestri Kevin Thomas

<£250K – Gordon Euman Double Glazing and Joinery

Overall National Winner was Thistle Windows and Conservatories, which is no stranger to these awards, having won ‘Best in Scotland’ 14 times over the years.

This year’s achievement represents the team’s 15th and 16th Awards win, having scooped the prize for their business category and claimed overall ‘Member of the Year’.

“Congratulations to Thistle; a worthy champion,” Karen said. “The ‘new look’ categories this year mean that not only has Thistle bagged its 15th trophy, it is also the first to ever win the award for this particular division.”

This year’s ‘Best New Member’ Award was jointly won by D&I Window Solutions and North Lakes (NLG) Window Systems.

After the Awards, members enjoyed dinner and took part in the charity raffle and auction, as well as donating via envelopes on the tables. The funds raised from these proceedings will be sent to Pendleside Hospice, The Veka UK Group’s chosen charity for the first half of 2017; £3,850 was raised on the night.

Alternative oompah band ‘The Jäger Maestros’ played live before a disco took revellers through to the early hours.