He wished to create space that would bring to light the numerous contributions and achievements of Malaysians of Indian origin to the economy of Malaysia and to their communities. These business people have contributed vastly towards nation building, however there had not been any concerted effort to recognise them and laud them. Thus came to life the 1st Indian Business Awards in 2011, founded by
Mr Gnanapragasam Perumal. He may have started small with the first awards presentation in the state of Perak. However that spark grew into a flame and spread to the Indian Business Awards being held in every state. It was to bring to the forefront the numerous businesses established and achieving continuous growth and success by the Indian community. It was a marketing platform to bring together the Indian business community and entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses. It was a formal recognition of their efforts and successes as entrepreneurs in the business world. The Indian Business Award endorsed by the Government of Malaysia and also the State Government where the award is being presented. The recipients undergo a screening process to qualify for the award. Amongst the criteria includes a duly registered company is the Companies Commission of Malaysia with 100% ownership by Indians; a minimum experience of 10 years in the chosen industry; and no legal suits or official investigations of misconduct. In 2015, IBA as it was known, transformed to SMIBA. It was primarily to better represent the focus of the award. The IBA name itself presented a wide spectrum of potential candidates. However, the focus of the founder was towards the small and medium industries. The mega players in the business world have the exposure and opportunities by virtue of their business size and market position. However the small and medium business owners are hampered in reaching for these opportunities due to their business size. Therefore, an award that comes with a formal certificate endorsed by the Government creates credibility for these businesses. Being a small or medium business they make have the vast years of experience but they may not have the endorsement to be able to confidently state their achievements and thus grow their business reach. Hence in line with this focus, Mr Gnanapragasam re-branded IBA to SMIBA which is Small and Medium Indian Business Association. SMIBA has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception and today counts over 856 entrepreneurs as its members who are all award recipients. A feather in its hat was being the 1st Indian Record Holder in the Malaysia Book of Records for the Most Number of Recipients in an Indian Business Awards Event with a total of 116 participants achieved in 2019. Building on this strong foundation, SMIBA breaks another record as it becomes the first Malaysian association in this niche field to tie-up in a collaboration with an Indian association, Tamil Nadu Small and Tiny Industries Assocation, TANSTIA, to recognise business entrepreneurs from Malaysia and Tamil Nadu with the award, Emerging Business Award 2022. The presentation ceremony was held in Tamil Nadu Chennai and was presided and presented by the Minister of Small Medium Enterprises, Government of Tamil Nadu, The Honourable Mr Anbarasan. SMIBA continues its efforts to push boundaries and cross borders to create collaborations with different business chambers and associations to continue to create an effective platform for Indian business owners to achieve greater growth and recognition.
