Community shines at Westpac Business Awards
The annual Westpac Tauranga Business Awards brought local business stars out to shine on Friday night with Vertical Horizons NZ named overall winner for 2013.
The Bay of Plenty Polytechnic sponsored Community Organisation Award was won by Supported Individualised Lifestyle Choices (SILC Ltd). The charitable trust supports people with disabilities to live valued meaningful lives of their choosing.
It was a busy night for the SILC team, also winning the ACC Workplace Safety Award. While SILC have been relatively silent in the community over the last 22 years they feel their business should be more visible and celebrate all that they do.
Dr Alan Hampton, Polytechnic Chief Executive, offered his congratulations to the SILC team. “It’s wonderful to see SILC acknowledged for the great work they’ve been doing for decades in our community. Our congratulations go out to the whole SILC team.”
There was a real family feel to the event for Bay of Plenty Polytechnic staff with a broad show of staff and students throughout the Awards.
Amongst the line-up was SILC Chief Executive Terese Germon, a graduate of the popular New Zealand Diploma in Business, and Ivy Joe, owner of The Bethlehem Coffee Club (and winner of the Small Business Award), who completed a range of computing for business short courses.
Cheryl Brown from Wave Creative Communications Agency (a former NZ Dip Bus student) presented an award while hospitality students were busy ‘out the back’ ensuring a seamless delivery of outstanding culinary delights. Prepared by Global Cuisine, a menu offering peppered venison with plum jelly, beef fillet and Portobello mushroom ravioli and sumac crispy chicken breast (amongst many other mouth-watering delights) the students were kept to a cracking pace.
Polytechnic business tutor Greg Bold represented his family to collect the Retail and Service Award for their business, Mitre 10 Mega Tauranga.
“It was a wonderful evening celebrating the best of Bay business,” said Dr Hampton. “We look forward to following all the winners’ business successes in 2014.”
The winners:
• Bay of Plenty Polytechnic Community Organisation Award: SILC
• ACC Workplace Safety Award: SILC
• Wave Brand Marketing and Design: Repertoire NZ
• Trust Power Customer Service Award: Repertoire NZ
• United Travel Retail &/or Service Excellence Award: Mite 10 Mega
• Tauranga Chamber of Commerce Business Innovation & Entrepreneurship Award: ARRC Wildlife Trust
• Ballance Agri-Nutrients Sustainability Award: Hairdressing Academy
• Cooney Lees Morgan Small Business Award: The Coffee Club Bethlehem
• Power Co Manufacturing and/or Logistics Award: Bake Shack
• Zespri Excellence in Business Leadership Award: Paul Adams
• The University of Waikato Corporate Leadership Award: Comvita
• Westpac Business of the Year: Vertical Horizons NZ