10 December 2014
Zameer Choudrey awarded honorary doctorate
The University of Kent has awarded an honorary doctorate to Bestway Group’s Chief Executive Zameer Choudrey.
Mr Choudrey was awarded the Doctor of Civil Law degree at a recent graduation ceremony in Canterbury Cathedral in recognition of his contribution to services to public life and business.
Having graduated in Accountancy from the University of Kent in 1981, Mr Choudrey joined Bestway in 1984 as Financial Controller and this year celebrates a decade leading the Bestway Group as its Chief Executive.
Mr Choudrey is extremely honored by his degree saying, “To be recognized for one’s achievements in life is always extremely gratifying and I would like to thank the University of Kent for this honorary doctorate. My links with the university go way back to my student days. I chose Kent as it provided me with a great learning experience. It is fantastic to see how the University has flourished and continues to be a centre of excellence with an outstanding reputation both internationally and domestically.”
During his ten year tenure as Chief executive of the Bestway Group, Mr Choudrey has led the group to invest almost £300m into the UK wholesale and retail sectors. He has overseen the takeovers of Batleys, Martex, Bellevue and most recently Sher Brothers in addition to establishing a greater footprint for Bestway in England and Scotland. His latest acquisition of Co-op Pharmacy - the UK’s third largest retail pharmacy group - was finalised in a deal worth £620m in October and sets the company on yet another pathway to growth.
Overseas, Mr Choudrey has led the expansion of the Bestway Group to become the largest producer of cement in Pakistan through organic growth and acquisitions and has also spearheaded the spectacular rise of Bestway-owned United Bank Limited (UBL) to become Pakistan’s second largest private bank.
Mr Choudrey is also a firm believer in giving back to the community and is renowned for his philanthropy and voluntary roles sitting as a trustee on a number of charities including Crimestoppers and Groceryaid in addition to playing a leading role in the Advisory Council at the British Asian Trust.
He is a trustee of Bestway Foundation UK and the chairman of Bestway Foundation Pakistan. The Group donates 2.5% of its annual profits to the Foundation for worthy causes both in the UK and overseas.