---

---

---

Since our launch in 2006, MSDUK has purposefully focused on breaking down the barriers of inequality across public and private sector supply chains. Throughout our journey, we have been responsible for bringing together more than 3000+ ethnic minority businesses (EMBs) with 120 Fortune 500 companies, generating over £1.3bn worth of spend for Ethnic Minority Owned Businesses. We have achieved this by aiding and mentoring innovative and high-growth EMBs to connect them with organisations across the UK and Europe that are committed to promoting and supporting supplier diversity.  Our recently published 2022 Annual Report highlights our remarkable achievements, in part thanks to the over £1m investment from our corporate members. 

---

“It was a significant year in our history as we grew our network, introduced ground-breaking initiatives, and delivered exceptional events – all with the sole purpose of connecting purchasing organisations with exceptionally innovative and growth-oriented ethnic minority businesses” 

Founder and CEO Mayank Shah

In this article, we encapsulate our extraordinary year and offer an insight into our targets for an even more successful 2023 by building on this momentum and continue driving positive changes.  

---

What Did MSDUK Achieve in 2022?

Our mission is to help to create increased diversity in the supply chain, by increasing awareness and support for ethnic minority businesses and we do this through our Innovation, Knowledge and Procurement Hubs. With £1m + investment from our corporate sponsors, we were able to help EMBs bring innovative ideas to market, develop business leaders of the future and achieve sustained growth through access to corporate supply chains. Here’s a summary of what we achieved in 2022 across these three distinct areas:  

---

1. INNOVATION HUB  

The 2022 Innovation Hub targeted ethnic minority businesses with a razor-sharp focus on Economic, Environmental or Social sustainability. Over 100 applications for the 2022 Innovation Challenge Competition were received from EMBs across Europe and the UK.  As the largest of its kind in the UK and Europe, the MSDUK 2022 Conference provided the perfect platform on which to share potentially award-winning Corporate Sustainability solutions to a captive audience. 

---

The 9 finalists were able to pitch their innovations and exhibit their businesses live to more than 800 attendees from a cross-section of ethnic minority businesses, large corporate organisations and partners.  

---

2. KNOWLEDGE HUB  

The aim of the Knowledge Hub is to connect MSDUK members and partners and encourage them to share expertise and experience in helping to shape the future direction of supplier diversity.  

In 2022 we did this by: 

---

• Bringing together C-Suite decision makers and Procurement Heads to encourage them to share strategies and influence change towards supplier procurement and diversity at our Leadership Summit. 
• Educating our corporate networks with the know-how, tools and techniques to plan and implement a successful EMB supply chain, through our Supplier Diversity Programme. 
• Providing organisations with the key ingredients to create and manage their own diverse and all-inclusive supply chains through the launch of the MSDUK Supplier Diversity Centre of Excellence (COE). 
• Publishing the European Report for Minority Businesses Matter, the first of its kind globally, which seeks to understand the challenges and contributions made by ethnic minority businesses and provides sound insight for EMBs and corporate organisations alike. 

---

3. PROCUREMENT HUB 

MSDUK’s mission, first and foremost is to connect ethnic minority businesses across the UK and Europe with organisations working on removing inequality in support of greater supplier diversity. In support of this, our Procurement Hub was responsible for the: 

---

• Execution of 3 Business Opportunity Days to introduce suppliers to buyers. 

• Development of a Benchmarking Tool (in partnership with Accenture and Teque) to enable businesses to monitor and analyse their own supplier diversity programmes. 
• Establishment of the MSDUK Accelerator Programme by providing a comprehensive programme of experiential learning, a community of peers, and access to a powerful network of experts, corporates, and advisors; all at no cost. 
• Launch of the European Supplier Diversity Project (ESDP) across six European countries with the aim of driving awareness and promoting the empowerment of ethnic minority businesses within corporate supply chains. 

---

---

Key Highlights 

---

---

---

What is MSDUK Aiming to Achieve in 2023? 

The launch of ESDP across Germany, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium and Ireland not only seeks to break down inequality and barriers across industries and geographical borders, but it also fosters innovation, growth and diversity. The programme aims to raise awareness and gain support for the business case for supplier diversity and inclusive procurement.

---

Continuing our ground-breaking momentum for 2023, “We have set a very ambitious goal [for 2023] and that is to generate £1bn spend from our corporate members with MSDUK certified ethnic minority businesses.”  Founder and CEO Mayank Shah. 

---

To gain a more profound understanding of MSDUK’s values, trace the trajectory since our commencement in 2006, the impact we have generated for Ethnic Minority Businesses, and our unwavering dedication towards the future, make sure to download our MSDUK 2022 Annual Report.  

---

If you’d like to help drive positive change as a corporate member, please join us in building a fairer, inclusive and diverse economy. Alternatively, if your business comprises 50% or more founders or owners from an ethnic minority background, then please register to unleash your full potential and access our broad portfolio of companies and learning opportunities.