ELAINE Birchall, who heads up the £500 million-turnover SHS Group, has become the first female vice-chair of the CBI business organisation in Northern Ireland.
She succeeds Fane Valley chief executiveTrevor Lockhart and serves alongside CBI NI chair and Barclays head of corporate banking Adrian Doran.
Elaine is widely recognised as one of the most respected CEOs in the north, having since 2015 led SHS Group, a family-owned consumer goods firm employing more than 1,000 people in commercial offices and production sites in Britain and Ireland.
Before joining SHS, which owns many household brands including WKD, Shloer, Bottlegreen and Zip fire lighters, she held management and leadership roles in Europe, the USA and South Pacific for Colgate Palmolive.
Elaine said: "As a region powered by businesses of all sectors and sizes, CBI NI will continue to use its voice to communicate what companies need at the highest level of policy and decision making. Our economic recovery depends on it.
"I personally intend to leverage our collective determination, expertise and innovation to showcase business as a force for good and a means of developing a greener and stronger economy, creating jobs, investment and growth that will deliver economic and societal benefits across our region.
"I look forward to working closely with the CBI team, building on their fantastic work and steering us towards a strong, secure and sustainable future."
CBI Northern Ireland directorAngela McGowan said: "I'm thrilled at Elaine's appointment. Her leadership will undoubtedly ensure CBI continues to represent the views of local businesses to policy makers - from Stormont, to Westminster and Whitehall - on the issues which matter at this most challenging of times.
"Her vast knowledge, experience and expertise has been invaluable to me as we navigated the challenges of last year and will continue to be so; as we help businesses bounce back from the pandemic, navigate our new relationship with the EU and accelerate our efforts towards net-zero.
"I also thank Trevor Lockhart for his hard work over the past few years, both as CBI chair and vice-chair. His wisdom, warmth and humour have been so important to me personally and to the entire CBI team through one of the most tumultuous periods I can remember."
