20 Years of Celebrating Local Business Excellence

20 Years of Celebrating Local Business Excellence

This year the Electra Kapiti Horowhenua Business Awards, which recognise and celebrate local business excellence, will celebrate its own milestone with the 20th edition of the Awards to be held in October.

Business Kapiti Horowhenua Inc. Chairman, Mark Ternent says that plans are in place to make the 2014 Awards the best yet. “Twenty years is a big achievement for the Business Awards so we want to take time to reflect on past successes as well as celebrate the latest generation of businesses who are helping to drive economic growth in our region.”

Mr Ternent says the Awards do more than simply recognise top performing businesses. “The application process can often be more rewarding than the Awards themselves,” he explains. “It’s an opportunity to go through a rigorous review that a lot of business owners find quite enlightening – it’s a great way to identify what’s working well and where improvements can be made. And every entrant in our Excellence and Achievement categories gets to spend time with a qualified Assessor who provides constructive feedback about their entry and their business overall.”

“It also provides opportunities to benchmark your business against similar organisations and to network with other motivated and focused local business people,” he says.

Businesses of any shape or size are welcome to enter, says Mr Ternent. “The Awards are open to all local businesses; big or small, established or emerging. We have categories recognising every level of business, as well as specialist categories focusing on excellence in key areas such as innovation and sustainability,” he explains.

“There are awards for both Excellence (Owner Operator, Small, and Medium/Large businesses) and Achievement (Health & Safety, New Thinking, Emerging, Sustainability, and Employer of Choice). Category winners then go head to head for the overall Supreme Award.”

And, after a successful debut last year, the “Customer Choice” awards (where customers vote for their favourite local businesses) will return in 2014. Simple to enter, these awards are expected to be hugely popular with both businesses and the public once again this year.

The 20th celebration will begin with a special event in Levin at the Horowhenua District Council on Monday, 5 May, starting at 5.30pm (there will be a $5 entry fee). BNZ Chief Economist Tony Alexander will provide his thoughts on the economy and how it is set to boom over the next few years.

A free Information Evening will then be held in the BNZ store at Coastlands, Paraparaumu on Thursday, 8 May, starting at 5.30pm, with Andy Prow of Aura RedEye (2013 Business of the Year) offering his tips and advice on entering the Awards.

Places are limited at both events so anyone wishing to attend will need to register at: www.bkh.org.nz. The Entry Coordinator, Assessors and Organisers will be available at both events to answer any questions about the Awards and the entry process.

Entries for the Business Awards open on Monday, 12 May.

ENDS

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