Azerbaijan to unveil "Entrepreneur of Year" competition winner in partnership with SMBDA

By Trend

The winner of the Entrepreneur of the Year competition, which is held by EY Azerbaijan in partnership with the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, will be announced on March 10, Trend reports.

Nine companies from Azerbaijan, namely, ATL Tech, ELAD, Fortune Trade, IDEA, JL Tech, Your Decor and Events, ZIRA Natural & Gourmet, Portmanat and YIGIM payment system, are participants in the competition this year.

One of the mentioned companies will be declared the winner and will have the opportunity to represent Azerbaijan at the Entrepreneur of the Year international competition.

For the third consecutive year, this competition, which is organized in partnership with the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has been sponsored by ABB. Ekvita company and Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) are also partners of the competition.

The Entrepreneur of the Year competition established by EY has been held since 1986. This is one of the most prestigious awards in the world of business. The "Entrepreneur of the Year" competition, which aims to demonstrate the success of promising businessmen, is organized in more than 60 countries, besides Azerbaijan.

The goal of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year program is to encourage the activity of high-potential businessmen and inspire others upon their example.

The information about the companies participating in the competition are as follows:

ATL Tech

ATL Tech is one of the biggest software development companies in Azerbaijan both in terms of the number of employees and income.

The company provides customers with call center solutions and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software. ATL Tech's goal is to make companies efficient and accessible.

Every day, 30,000-40,000 telephone calls are processed and managed through ATL software. ATL has an artificial intelligence laboratory that allows recognizing speech in the Azerbaijani language and converting it into text.

ATL is expanding its activity outside of Azerbaijan and presently, serves clients in Georgia, the UK and the US. ATL Tech plans to become a regional leader in software development.

ELAD

ELAD is a transport company having over 16 year-experience in the automotive industry. ELAD has been recognized as a responsible and reliable partner in the market of automotive services.

The company renders such services as passenger transportation services (shuttle bus service), transfer services from and to the airport, such services as meeting and transporting guests around the city and around the country, car rent with a driver, car evacuation, office relocation, etc.

Moreover, the company also renders cargo transportation services. Presently, ELAD has a wide range of cars that allow customers to solve any problem related to the transport services.

Fortune Trade

Fortune Trade is a supplier and official distributor of several world brands of lubricating oils, filters, various fluids and AdBlue products in Azerbaijan.

The company meets the demand of both corporate and individual customers by offering a wide range of industrial, motor, transmission fluid, brake fluids, antifreeze and filters.

Moreover, the company is the founder of www.oilmarket.az , the first platform created for the online sale of these products. "Fortune Trade" plans to start the production of lubricants in Azerbaijan in the coming years and export the products of the Azerbaijani brand to the world market.

The company plans to further expand its client portfolio abroad.

IDEA

IDEA company has been operating since 2003 and it is engaged in the production of small architectural forms made of wood and metal for public spaces and uses them in construction projects.

Among the small architectural forms are benches, poles, pavilions, pergolas and other elements which are used in open spaces. Presently, the company's portfolio includes more than 500 types of products.

The products are of high quality and long-term warranty and are exported to Qatar, UAE, Russia, the UK, as well as to other countries. IDEA is the only company in the CIS and the Middle East offering such a wide range of products. The goal of IDEA is to become the world famous brand in its industry and represent Azerbaijan.

JL Tech

JL Tech company works in the field of data-technologies. The customers can process data easily and use it more efficiently through JL Tech.

The company is the biggest supplier of Oracle in the region and has its Gold Partner and Partner of the Year status.

Along with Azerbaijan, JL Tech has representative offices in Georgia and Ukraine.

Moreover, the company has a representative office in Turkey since January 2021, where it plans to expand its activity.

Portmanat

"Portmanat" is the first e-wallet system in Azerbaijan. The company offers B2B and B2C solutions for clients.

"Portmanat" is the first platform that allows integration of the payment system into websites in a very short period of time (about two hours). "Portmanat" provides clients with short-term loans.

The employees of various companies can receive a certain part of their salary ahead of schedule through another product - "Portmanat Avans". Portmanat plans to become a digital bank and issue its own payment cards.

YIGIM Payment System

YIGIM payment system founded in 2017 offers the high-tech payment solutions to the companies.

The system allows businessmen to collect payments in a short period of time through a range of payment channels (cash terminals, Mobile Banking apps, e-wallets).

The brand also acts as a processing service. The system offers a wide range of functional solutions to the companies for accepting payments via bank cards on their websites and via mobile applications.

YIGIM payment system has "PCI DSS Level 1" certificate, which allows to store and process card information. The software is wholly owned by the YIGIM brand.

More than 200 companies use YIGIM payment system for cash and non-cash payments thanks to the exclusive solutions, flexibility and professional approach.

Among them are such international companies as Wolt, Bolt, Maxim, such famous brands as Absheron Group, PMD Hospitality hotels, 189, Optimal Electronics, Music Gallery. The services can be considered unique not only in Azerbaijan, but also in other countries.

For this reason, the company's current customers offered the YIGIM system to cooperate in Georgia, Kazakhstan and Central Asia to use these services. The company plans to render the services at least in two foreign countries in 2022.

Your Decor and Events

Your Decor and Events company was founded in 2018.

The company offers its clients various services for organizing and holding events, advertising, branded products, VIP gifts, etc.

Your Decor and Events is known not only in Azerbaijan, but also in Canada, the US and the European countries.

The company has been involved in organizing a number of national and international events. Your Decor and Events helps clients to organize events correctly and realize the ideas they want to bring to life.

ZIRA Natural & Gourmet

ZIRA Natural & Gourmet, representing the premium and luxury segments of the market, is a national brand that produces preserves, jams, sauces, and vegetable snacks.

The main concept of the ZIRA company is the production of high-quality products, demonstrating the rich agricultural and gastronomic traditions of the country and the promotion of Azerbaijan on the world stage in the field of premium food products.

The main requirement for products is the natural cultivation of fruits, vegetables. That is why local farmers who do not use chemicals supply all ingredients in small volumes.

The company exports its products to foreign countries, mainly, to Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine, as well as to the non-traditional markets for the Azerbaijani products, such as Japan and the US.