Behind the Mic: Presenter Matthew Walker Hosting the Runnymede Business Awards 2026 at Royal Holloway University of London
Matthew Walker hosted the Runnymede Business Awards 2026 at Royal Holloway University of London on 11th September 2026, for the third consecutive year. Organised by Business Runnymede and sponsored by Royal Holloway University of London as the headline partner, the ceremony brought together businesses, community organisations, sponsors, and civic leaders to celebrate the very best of enterprise and community spirit across the Runnymede borough.
There is something genuinely special about hosting a community business awards ceremony. The room at an event like this is not filled with the representatives of global corporations or international brands. It is filled with people who have built something from nothing, who employ their neighbours, who serve their communities, and who have poured everything they have into making their businesses exceptional. The awards mean something profound to the people receiving them, and that makes the role of host feel like a genuine privilege rather than simply a professional engagement.
The ceremony
The 2026 ceremony featured nine award categories, drawing from over 70 nominations, a testament to the depth and quality of business across the borough. Each award was presented by its category sponsor, with Matthew conducting live interviews with every winner on stage, drawing out the personal stories behind each achievement and giving every business the moment in the spotlight they had earned.
The Mayor of Runnymede Borough Council, Cllr Steve Ringham, opened the proceedings, and Professor Christos Tsinopoulos, Dean of the Faculty of Business and Law at Royal Holloway University of London, presented the headline awards. Nick Wood-Dow, Deputy Lieutenant of Surrey, addressed the ceremony on the King's Award for Enterprise. It was an evening that reflected the breadth and ambition of the Runnymede business community at every level.
The winners
The Best New Business Award went to Superstars Playcafe, a business described by the judges as having built a community infrastructure that provides vital support to families while maintaining a robust, accessible business model. Proof that a business can be both profitable and deeply impactful from its very first year of trading.
The Best Town Centre Award was won by The Musselman Fishmonger in Egham, a business that has not only built a loyal following but has actively contributed to the vitality of the high street, drawing over 60 per cent of its customers from outside the town. The Musselman Fishmonger went on to claim the overall Business of the Year award, the winner of winners from all nine categories, recognising a business that has raised the bar for what a town centre retailer can be.
The Growth Award produced one of the most compelling stories of the evening, with two winners recognised in a category where the calibre of nominations was so high that a single winner simply felt insufficient. Metric Office Furniture and Interiors Ltd and Fractional Execs Ltd both took the award, the latter also claiming the Entrepreneur and Innovator Award for its AI-powered solutions now helping businesses across the UK, South Africa, UAE, US, Canada, Belgium, and France.
SEKO Logistics won the Sustainability Award for achieving a 30 per cent year-on-year reduction in operational greenhouse gas emissions and attaining EcoVadis Gold rating in ESG activity, a genuine model for the logistics industry at a time when the sector is under increasing pressure to address its environmental impact.
The moments that stopped the room
The Employer of the Year award went to Chop and Change, and the citation for their win deserves to be heard in full. The owner has consistently welcomed young people and alternative learners into her business, funded a holiday for an employee's 21st birthday, taken her entire team to Disneyland Paris, and purchased personalised number plates for cars as individual rewards for loyalty and achievement. It is the kind of leadership that transforms a business into something people genuinely want to be part of, and the room responded accordingly.
The Community Hero Award went to The Eikon Charity, which has spent 30 years supporting children across Surrey who are going through some of the most difficult experiences of their young lives. Their impact includes empowering 18,000 children and families, nearly 15,000 group attendances, and over 13,000 one-to-one support sessions. Numbers that represent real lives changed. It was one of those moments in an awards ceremony where the room goes quiet in the best possible way.
And the Outstanding Contribution Award went to Shazia David, CEO of Caremark Spelthorne and Runnymede, whose dedication to transforming in-home care for some of the most vulnerable members of the community has created an organisation where countless individuals have been able to remain in their own homes for longer. A remarkable person receiving a thoroughly deserved recognition.
A word on community awards
Hosting events at the scale of Formula 1 or the Winter Olympics carries its own extraordinary feeling. But there is something about a community business awards ceremony that cannot be replicated at any other level. The people in that room in Egham on 11th September 2026 had worked for years to build something that mattered to the people around them. The awards were not just recognition. For many of them, they were validation. And being the person trusted to deliver that moment, for the third year running, is a privilege that does not diminish with repetition.
The organiser's feedback after the event reflected everything the evening set out to achieve: "Thank you again for compering another great event. I have had many messages from businesses saying how much they enjoyed the ceremony and appreciated winning awards. We are keen to continue with the awards next year. If we do, I hope that you will be able to continue to support."
If you are planning a business awards ceremony, community recognition event, or corporate gala and want to discuss how Matthew Walker can help make it exceptional, get in touch at matthew@thestandoutcompany.com or call +44 (0)207 088 8085.