The early years

The inaugural International Property Awards were presented in 1995 and covered 10 different residential categories. Award winners gave favourable reports and feedback, noting a number of benefits ranging from increased profile and positive customer response to increased coverage from local and national press and improved staff morale.

We held our first gala event at the Park Lane Hotel in London, with most of the winners attending to collect their awards. The pre-dinner reception provided winners with a chance to network with other companies and many worthwhile business relationships stemmed from that first gathering.

In 1998 we held our gala event at the House of Commons – a very popular choice of venue amongst winners. As the reputation of the awards grew, attracting more publicity and entrants from a wider range of countries, so did the demands on space. Consequently, we moved the gala evenings to the Marriott Grosvenor Square, now the Royal Lancaster Hotel.

By this time the International Property Awards were established as the premier programme recognising and rewarding excellence in their field and the gala dinners had become essential dates on the property industry calendar.

Growth

In 2005 we launched the Daily Mail UK Property Awards, which quickly gained status as the most prestigious honour available to UK property companies.

In 2006 we started the CNBC Arabia Arabian Property Awards with a glittering gala event held at the Royal Mirage Palace Ballroom in Dubai. Just 12 months later we needed an even larger venue for the Arabian awards and selected the Jumeirah Madinat Ballroom, also in Dubai, which could accommodate up to 1400 guests.

In 2007 the International Property Awards gala event was held at the internationally renowned Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, with competing companies selected from the highest-scoring winners in each of the categories from every world region. Winners here were also showcased at the world's largest event for real estate professionals organised by two of our sponsors – NAR and SIMA. 30,000 property professionals attended this expo in November 2007.

In 2008 the Asia Pacific, American and the European Awards were established with gala dinners in Singapore, Florida and London respectively. The International Property Awards were presented at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Orlando, November 2008.

Over the years the awards have grown steadily and the support team has expanded from just two people to a staff of 12. We have also seen growth in entries from across the world, with 97 different countries represented during 2008. This serves further proof of the awards' status as the world's largest and best.

Sponsorship

We are honoured to have a panel of more than 50 well-respected experts from a range of complementary backgrounds, who volunteer their time to assist in the selection and judging process. Many represent well-established professional bodies from different countries.

Over the years leading branded companies have sponsored the awards as a means of raising their profiles and making new business contacts amongst winners and their clients. Jaguar, Mercedes Benz, and Bentley Motors have been prominent headline sponsors. Aston Martin supported the Arabian Property Awards in 2006 and Jack Barclay, the world's largest Bentley dealership, sponsored the UK Property Awards in 2007. HSBC Arabia sponsored the Arabian awards in 2008.

More recently, major international media partners have come forward in support of the excellence and endeavour shown by participating companies such as the Daily Mail and CNBC Arabia. Current supporters include Bloomberg Television, the New York Times, Sydney Morning Herald and Google.