On November 25, 2024, the Riga City Council held an awards ceremony at the Small Guild, where Riga's best companies were honoured for the fourth time. In the presence of the Riga City Mayor, Vilnis Ķirsis, awards were presented to the most successful companies in the city's priority business and investment sectors.
The winners are: Jeff App, Circle K Business Centre, TestDevLab, Capitalica Asset Management project VERDE, Lexel Fabrika, and elProt.
Vilnis Ķirsis emphasized:
"Entrepreneurship is an integral part of the city's economic lifeblood. Together, we ensure its steady pulse – it is the city's responsibility to create conditions that make it easy for businesses to thrive without unnecessary bureaucracy or other hurdles. In contrast, business owners take on the task of fostering growth and creating jobs. This year, Riga is proud to be recognized as the 'Most Business-Friendly Metropolis' by the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry – a testament to our efforts in fostering a business-friendly environment and changing the culture of collaboration within Riga City Council. On behalf of the Riga City Council, I thank all entrepreneurs operating in our capital. I am especially proud of those featured in this year's 'Riga's Company of the Year' awards – both nominees and winners. Together, we continue to make Riga better."
Fredis Bikovs, Director of Riga Investment and Tourism Agency:
"This evening, we celebrated companies that shape Riga's future by presenting the 'Riga's Company of the Year 2024' award. When selecting the winners for each sector, the jury asked: what kind of companies do we want to see in this city? Riga continues to evolve dynamically – the city is becoming home to international business centres, offering high-quality office spaces, while startups and the ICT sector are gaining momentum, forming the backbone of the city's economy. I would like to highlight this year's new category – Riga's New Company of the Year, which provides an opportunity to reward companies that are on a growth trajectory and have the potential to become industry leaders in the future."
During the event, awards were presented to the top companies in six of Riga's priority sectors: startups, international business centres, information and communication technology, real estate, high-value-added manufacturing, and the new category for 2024, Riga's New Company of the Year. This year's evaluation criteria and quantitative growth metrics included sustainability, employee well-being, ambitions to enter international markets, a commitment to innovation and process improvement.
Winners of "Riga's Company of the Year" 2024:
- Riga's startup company of the year: Jeff App
- Riga's company of the year in the International Business Center Sector: Circle K Business Centre
- Riga's company of the year in the ICT Sector: TestDevLab
- Riga's company of the year in the Real Estate Sector: Capitalica Asset Management project VERDE
- Riga's company of the year in the High Value-Added Manufacturing Sector: Lexel Fabrika
- Riga's New company of the Year (NEW): elProt
The nominees and winners were evaluated by a jury consisting of Fredis Bikovs (Riga Investment and Tourism Agency), Linda Helmane (Riga Investment and Tourism Agency), Inese Andersone (Riga City Council), Inese Berga (LETERA), Alesja Kirčenko (ABSL), Eduards Ritums (Startin.LV), Laura Bluša (NĪAA), Signe Bāliņa (LIKTA).
The winners received a specially designed award – a cast glass statue featuring a golden rooster, developed collaboratively by Overpriced Design, Sporrong, and artist Baiba Glass.