In a momentous celebration of business excellence and cultural diversity, MP Foods, a leading Hastings-based Indian grocery enterprise, won the Best Asian Business award at a prestigious honours held recently.
Since its inception in 2012, Asians in the Bay Awards 2023 has become a popular platform for acknowledging the significant contributions of the Asian community to the enrichment of Hawke's Bay across diverse sectors, including business, trade, education, horticulture, health, and youth enterprise.
The awards recognise exceptional contributions from the Asian community to the enrichment of Hawke's Bay.
The event, organised by Multicultural Association Hawke's Bay on August 1, 2023, saw an impressive turnout of leaders from Hawke’s Bay community and representatives from a spectrum of Bay's ethnic communities.
The awards night was a whirlwind of singing, dancing, delicious food, and ample opportunities for individuals from various communities and cultures to connect.
Talking to The Indian Weekender, Kiwi-Indian Mohinder Singh Nagra, the visionary force behind MP Food, said, "We are deeply honoured to receive this award. It is a testament to the unwavering support of the Indian/Punjabi community, the local community, and our dedicated staff. This recognition fuels our commitment to serving and enriching the lives of our patrons."
Reflecting on this momentous achievement, Nagra, who dons multiple hats of being an entrepreneur, restaurateur and Justice of the Peace, said, “I came to NZ in 1989 and resided in Whanganui and opened our first restaurant. Then, we moved to Hawke’s Bay in 2000 and opened our second restaurant in Hastings.
“We realised there was no market/grocery store to get products to use in the restaurant and for local families who had moved to Hawke’s Bay. That is when we decided to open our first grocery store, MP Foods, in 2008. This brings the community together and makes it feel at home with all their grocery needs under one roof."
He adds, “We were one of the first large Indian Asian grocery stores in Hawke’s Bay. Since then, we have started wholesale to other shops and restaurants nationwide. In 2021, we opened our super grocery store with all Indian and Asian groceries and home items.
“In the future, we will expand our store by adding products from the Middle East, South Africa, and other countries.”
Napier-based Bollywood Stars, a restaurant owned by Nagra, won the Best Asian Restaurant runner-up award at the event.
Karla Lee, CEO of Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce and a judge at the awards, lauded MP Foods for their dedication to serving the community.
“I was blown away by the exceptional businesses and individuals recognised at the event. MP Foods truly deserves the recognition."
Lee highlighted the establishment's role as a grocery store and a beacon of cultural unity, providing more than 1,000 grocery items to serve the community's diverse culinary preferences.
"As a family-owned business, they have been passionately committed to supplying global Asian foods and products to the Hawke's Bay community and beyond. MP Foods goes above and beyond to serve their customers, providing a diverse range of over 1,000 grocery items," she said.
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