Around 800 businesswomen attended the 26th annual Vitalise Women of the Year Luncheon and Awards at Birmingham’s Hilton Metropole Hotel on 3 October.

The prestigious Vitalise Businesswoman of the Year Award 2008 was won by Hilary Devey, who built up her prosperous pallet company Pall-Ex from scratch, and who was recently featured on Channel 4’s popular programme, ‘Secret Millionaire’.

Professor Christine King CBE, Chief Executive of Staffordshire University, was named Vitalise Woman of Achievement 2008 in recognition of her outstanding contribution to higher education and lifelong learning.

The Ceremony, now in its 26th year, was presented by Arti Halai of ITV’s Central News and included a keynote speech from Silla Maizey, Head of Corporate Responsibility for British Airways. The event also featured a Selfridges fashion show, a luxury raffle and entertainment from Opera on the Run.

The Awards honour Midlands-based women’s outstanding individual achievement in all professions and provide positive role models to encourage other women to excel.

Proceeds from the Vitalise Women of the Year Awards 2008 will be donated directly to Vitalise Skylarks, which is set to benefit by over £30,000 from the event. Over the previous 25 years, the awards have raised an incredible £500,000 for the Centre.

Vitalise would like to thank all of our sponsors