Atul Pathak, the managing director of Appt Corporation and successful franchisee of no fewer than 20 McDonald's restaurants has received a prestigious award for his business success at a glittering event in Manchester.
Mr Pathak has been presented with the award for 'Business of the Year' at the 2012 Asian Lite Business Awards, held this month in Manchester and attended by business's elite.
The awards specifically honour Asian business people excelling in their fields. These are men and women from all across the UK who are making their mark, particularly in the cultural, professional and charity sectors. The 'Business of the Year' award was presented to Mr Pathak in recognition of his exceptional business acumen and achievements and for his ongoing commitment to running socially responsible businesses.
Speaking to the press after being presented with his honour, Mr Pathak said that he felt privileged to be recognised for his success and immediately thanked his employees for being the business's 'bedrock'.
He also explained that the established McDonald's franchise model gave him a valuable opportunity to set up and grow a highly successful business, even in the current tough economic climate. Mr Pathak said that he was enthusiastic about continuing to grow the business, while also contributing positively to the local communities in which he operated.
Mr Pathak's journey is certainly an interesting one. He arrived in the UK in 1984 from India in a notably tough year. The country was being strangled by a recession and the miners were on strike. And yet he still had the ambition to become a successful entrepreneur.
After a period of time working in a range of business ventures, Mr Pathak established himself in 2003 by becoming a part of the legendary McDonald's franchise business. His first restaurant opened in Southall, which today has one of the UK's largest Indian communities. His franchise investment continued to grow until he owned twenty McDonald's restaurants across North London. His business now has a multi-million-pound turnover and currently employs an impressive 1500 staff.
As well as being a successful and enthusiastic business person, Mr Pathak is committed to charitable work and devotes a large amount of his spare time to charity and community groups. He is particularly enthusiastic about those which support the development, education and advancement of vulnerable and young people, those which work to improve the local environment and those which foster local community cohesion.
It is this strong focus on community and positive action which has earned Mr Pathak the respect of school teachers, police officers, community leaders and charities in the areas his restaurants are based in.
We wish Mr Pathak luck and are delighted to hear yet another story of franchising success, in which the business franchise model has allowed a person to realise their dreams, both in business and in the wider community, through successful self-employment.
