Proud Loudon praises city’s success
KEITH Loudon praised the city of Leeds and urged its business community to showcase its power on the world stage after he won the Yorkshire Ambassador award at TheBusinessDesk.com’s Yorkshire Business Masters yesterday.
Cheers all round accompanied the announcement of his success at the culmination of the awards at Aspire in Leeds, which was attended by more than 160 of the region’s business leaders.
The veteran stockbroker, who turned 80 earlier this year, won the award, sponsored by Leeds Metropolitan University, ahead of fellow finalists Jim Dick of Hull Bondholders and Etta Cohen, founder of Forward Ladies.
He said: “I am proud to be a part of this city that has grown so much over the past years.
“It is the second financial city in the land and that is one of the things that deserves recognition by the rest of the country, Europe and the world.
“I am proud of everyone in the business community in Leeds and we have got to make sure the world around us knows what we can do.”
The Redmayne-Bentley senior partner, who said his “enthusiasm and the good Yorkshire air” gets him through his days, has no plans to retire and his firm recently acquired £300m of assets from rival Fyshe Horton Finney.
He is a former Lord Mayor of Leeds and is a supporter of many charities and community projects.
A champion of education, Mr Loudon pioneered ‘Right to Read’ and student placement schemes.
He began his career in the stockbroking industry in 1962 and was instrumental in the merger that saw Redmayne & Co and JW Granger and Co become Redmayne-Bentley in 1965.
