Businessman picks up OBE
AN ASIAN businessman and charity worker was presented with his OBE at an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in London.
Mohan Mansigani, from north London, won the honour for his charitable services to healthcare in the Queen’s 2021 birthday honours list in June last year.
Mansigani, a trustee of the St John Ambulance charity, collected the OBE from Princess Anne, who is the charity’s commandant-in-chief (Youth).
“I have been lucky enough to give something back to the country that has given me so much through my work at St John and the Migration Museum,” said Mansigani.
He is also a fellow of the UK’s Institute of Chartered Accountants and joined St John Ambulance’s board six years ago. The charity provides first aid and emergency medical services mainly through volunteers
“As the son of immigrants and as a boy from Islington, being honoured in this way is beyond my wildest dreams. I would like to dedicate this award to my wife Renu Mansigani who has selflessly taught young children human values over the last 20 years through the Mill
Hill Sai Centre and is truly worthy of recognition,” he said.
Mansigani, known as a creative finance director, was the CFO of the Casual Dining Group, previously known as Tragus, which operated popular UK restaurant brands such as Café Rouge and Strada.
“My father came to London in 1951 with the aim of supporting his family back in India, thinking he would return as soon as he achieved this goal. In the event he stayed and, from humble beginnings, built a successful business,” Mansigani said.
“I was the first in my family to go to university and went on to qualify as a chartered accountant.”
Following the successful sale of his last business, Mansigani worked with not-forprofit groups. He has been finance trustee at St John Ambulance since July 2016.
The charity said his expertise was critical when its main sources of income were halted by Covid-19.
Mansigani played a key role in securing funding to maintain St John’s financial viability and enable its teams – including almost 30,000 new vaccination volunteers – to support the NHS and local communities by delivering more than 1.6 million hours of activity.