29 August 2022
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Machinery manufacturer co-founder attends event hosted by prince.
AGRIMECH co-founder Belinda Smith recently attended an event hosted by Prince Charles for the 2022 recipients of a Queen’s Award.
Agrimech, based on the borders of Cambridgeshire and Norfolk, received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise earlier this year in recognition of its success at home and abroad in the bagging and weighing technology and solutions market.
The company was established 13 years by Darren and Belinda Smith and has since established a reputation as a market leader in specially-designed machinery for the agricultural industry. Belinda who accepted the invitation to Buckingham Palace and shook hands with the prince, who was joined by Princess Anne, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Princess Alexandra.
“It was a wonderful evening and it was great to meet other award winners from this year. I was lucky enough to meet the Princess Royal, who asked about the business and our machinery. I also met the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester which was lovely. Norfolk is very well-known by the royal family so we had a connection,” said Belinda, who also shook hands with the Prince of Wales.
Having established itself as a major player in the United Kingdom, in recent years Agrimech has made inroads into the North American market, and has plans for further expansion.
Overseas sales have grown and lessons learnt across the Atlantic are also proving useful closer to home, with Agrimech’s trademark now registered in 28 countries across Europe.
Darren and Belinda are still involved in the day-to-day running of the business. Both had years of experience in the sector before launching their own enterprise. Darren spent more than two decades working as a service engineer, while Belinda was brought up in the family vegetable supply company.
Belinda is pictured meeting the Prince of Wales at the royal reception.
