KEY POINTS:
Clothing designer and businesswoman Peri Drysdale was acclaimed as supreme amongst an elite group of New Zealand's entrepreneurs at an awards ceremony in Auckland last night.
The 2008 World Class New Zealand Awards were organised by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) and networking organisation Kea NZ.
Drysdale is founder of clothing labels Snowy Peak and Untouched World, as well as the Untouched World Charitable Trust.
She headed off a formidable field of contenders for the supreme award, including business leader Craig Norgate, IT/communications guru Rod Drury, Pumpkin Patch's Maurice Prendergast and yacht design genius Bruce Farr.
The judges said Drysdale was chosen for her business achievements, work in showcasing New Zealand overseas and in recognition of her leadership in social and environmental sustainability issues.
"It is an absolute privilege to be given this award and I am humbled to be amongst such talented New Zealand business men and women," she said.
"This award is testament to the great things New Zealand can achieve as a nation and the impact we can have within the global business landscape."
It's not Drysdale's first recognition for her work. In 1992 she was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to New Zealand in manufacturing and export.
She received the South Island Businesswoman of the Year award in 2002, and she was North and South Magazine's New Zealander of the Year for 2006.
The category winners were:
Biotechnology - Prof. Garth Cooper
Information and Communications Technology - Rod Drury
Research, Science, Technology & Academia - Prof. Margaret Brimble
Finance, Investment & Business Services - Craig Norgate
Manufacturing - Maurice Prendergast
Creative Industries - Phil Keoghan
New Thinking - Bruce Farr
Supreme Award - Peri Drysdale
"The Untouched World Charitable Trust provides leadership and development opportunities for young people on a strong environmental platform of resource sustainability and respect for nature," noted Kea NZ chair Stephen Tindall.
The programmes run by the Charitable Trust are explained here.
