December 10, 2018 – Vancouver: Small Business BC, the province’s premier resource for entrepreneurs, and Canada Post asked the public to nominate their favourite small businesses in British Columbia for this year’s 16th Annual Small Business BC Awards. Nearly 600 businesses were nominated and tasked with gaining as many votes as they could. The ten businesses from each category who received the most votes have made it into the semi-finals of the awards.
As the leading small business awards competition in British Columbia, these awards not only recognize the outstanding achievements of local entrepreneurs, they also provide a powerful platform for future success.
With ten different categories, here are the Top 10 semi-finalists for each:
Premier People’s Choice Award
Presented by the Province of British Columbia
2 Guys with Knives, Vancouver
Kootenay Canine Adventures, Cranbrook
Legends Academy, Abbotsford
Munday Media & Design, Oliver
Namaskar Yoga, Parksville
Sue’s Clothesline, Creston
The Realm of Toys, Williams Lake
Trench Brewing & Distilling Inc, Prince George
Vancouver Island Hot Sauce, Nanoose Bay
Warmland Garage Doors Service, Duncan
Best Apprentice Training
Presented by ITA
Diamond Diesel, Surrey
Geotility Geothermal Installations Corporation, Kelowna
Mr. Swirl Plumbing, Coquitlam
Murphy Construction Corp. Pemberton
Norlang Automotive Ltd, Langley
NZ Builders, Victoria
RDC Fine Homes, Whistler
Solid Rock Steel, Surrey
The Garage, Burnaby
Whistler Cooks, Whistler
Best Community Impact
Presented by Vancity
Jo’s Place, Pender Island
Long Table Grocery, Quesnel
MakerLabs, Vancouver
Meanwhile in Sooke, Sooke
Murphy Construction Corp. Pemberton
Namaskar Yoga, Parksville
Okanagan RAWSOME, Grindrod
Riot Brewing Co. Chemainus
Sue’s Clothesline, Creston
Young Moviemakers, Vancouver
Best Company
ARPA Investments, Kamloops
Boldly Creative, Vancouver
Glutenull, Coquitlam
Jade Electrolysis, Richmond
On The Edge Roofing, Ucluelet
Popov Leather, Nelson
Riot Brewing Co. Chemainus
Rycor, Vancouver
SUVA Beauty, Surrey
The Realm of Toys, Williams Lake
Best Concept
Barnacle Systems Inc, Victoria
Campertunity, Vancouver
Haywood Golf, Vancouver
Kootenay Canine Adventures, Cranbrook
Locelle Digital Inc. North Saanich
Motus Health & Wellness, Vancouver
Mr. Quinley’s Weird, Wonderful and (Sometimes) Slightly Odd Adventures, Surrey
Raven Reads Books Ltd. Kamloops
susGRAINable, Vancouver
The Jump Life, North Vancouver
Best Employer
Presented by TruShield
COCO Cafe, Cedar
Erickson Coaching International, Vancouver
Insights West, Vancouver
Jo’s Place, Pender Island
Lux Insights, North Vancouver
MQN Architecture and Interior Design, Vernon
Murphy Construction Corp. Pemberton
Natural Evolution Hair Studio, Parksville
Redstamp Agency, Coquitlam
ZedStudio, Coquitlam
Best Immigrant Entrepreneur
Presented by Small Business BC
Arora Comfortechs, Vancouver
e-Visa Immigration Services Inc. Vancouver
HJ Wu & Company Inc. (CPA), Vancouver
Kipling Media Ltd, Vancouver
LifeStyle Channel Ltd. Vancouver
Liontech Solutions, Vancouver
Marwick Marketing, Squamish
Moving2Canada.com, Vancouver
NextBillion.org, Vancouver
Westbridge Media, Vancouver
Best Innovation
AirGMS, Vancouver
Coulson Ice Blast, Port Alberni
Enercheez, Nelson
GenomeMe Lab Inc. Richmond
GotHire, Vancouver
Lift Startups, Comox
Mommy Brain Creatives Inc. Vancouver
M·Y·O Cosmetic Cases, Surrey
Traction Guest, Burnaby
The Self Publishing Agency, North Vancouver
Best International Trade
Community Customs Brokers Inc. Surrey
Earths Eats, Coquitlam
Elate Cosmetics, Victoria
Mr. Quinley’s Weird, Wonderful and (Sometimes) Slightly Odd Adventures, Surrey
Pacific Coast Seafood Distributors Inc. Surrey
Popov Leather, Nelson
Photoras Consulting, Surrey
Shakti Acupressure Mat Canada, Vancouver
Sumo Environmental Products Inc. Vancouver
Thai Roots Trading Corp, Vancouver
Best Marketer
Array Web + Creative, Nanaimo
blueberrycloud, North Vancouver
Claris Media, Fernie
Get Clear Consulting, Abbotsford
KIMBO Design Inc. Vancouver
Kipling Media Ltd, Vancouver
Longevity Graphics, Coquitlam
SUVA Beauty, Surrey
SYN Interactive, Vancouver
Town Hall Brands, Vancouver
The Top 10 Semi-Finalists will be given just less than one month to provide an expert panel of judges a detailed application outlining why they deserve to win the award they’ve been nominated for. These applications will be used to decide the Top 5 Finalists, who will be officially announced on January 21, 2019. The winners of each category will be announced at the Small Business BC Awards Gala, held at the Vancouver Convention Centre on February 21, 2019. Small Business BC Award winners will receive the Premier’s Prize in the amount of $1,500 cash, a one-year All-Access Pass to Small Business BC education and experts, and the honour of being named a top B.C. small business. More details about the Small Business BC Awards can be found at http://sbbcawards.ca/. — Quotes “It’s fantastic to see small businesses nominated and recognized from every corner of B.C., not only for their success but also for the positive impact they are making in their local communities and the global economy. We’re very excited to see who comes out on top” Sara Clark, VP of Strategic Projects, Small Business BC
“Canada Post is very happy to celebrate the success of small businesses and entrepreneurs through our involvement in the Small Business BC Awards. We are looking forward to hearing all the stories of success and growth.” – Lise Côté, GM, Consumer & Small Business Marketing, Canada Post
Media Contact:
George Mohan
Marketing and Communications Coordinator, Small Business BC
Direct: 604-775-5607
About Small Business BC
Small Business BC provides entrepreneurs with the information and guidance necessary to build a solid foundation for their business. Through a wide range of products, services, education and resources there’s a piece that fits with every business. No matter what stage or what skill level, when an entrepreneur finds themselves asking “How do I…?” Small Business BC is the one to call.
About Canada Post
Canada Post is Canada’s primary postal operator, providing service to more than 16 million addresses and delivering nearly 8.4 billion items in 2016. They are committed to providing innovative physical and electronic delivery solutions that create value for customers, small business and Canadians.