Nominations sought for annual Mayor’s Small Business Awards

Nominations for the annual Mayor’s Small Business Awards are now being accepted, the Maui Chamber of Commerce announced, with all nominees and winners to be honored later this year.

Nomination forms can be completed online and must be submitted with all required information on or before July 18.

“We are very excited to hold the 2022 Mayor’s Small Business Awards this fall and encourage clients, friends, family, employees and service providers of outstanding businesses to nominate them,” said Pamela Tumpap, president of the Maui Chamber of Commerce. “This is an opportunity to show your thanks and appreciation for the businesses, business people and nonprofits doing incredible work in our community.”

The 2022 Mayor’s Small Business Awards recognize outstanding businesses in the Maui County community that have 100 or fewer employees and have had a Hawaii general excise tax license for no fewer than two years.

Other criteria include demonstrating business leadership in a changing economic environment, creating a quality work environment for their employees, exhibiting the aloha spirit and exemplary customer service, developing partnerships with other sectors of the community, utilizing innovative practices or pivoting in a unique way to sustain the operations throughout COVID-19, and demonstrating other exceptional qualities or traits.

This year’s event includes six award categories, including Exceptional Small Business of the Year (10 or fewer employees), Exceptional Small Business of the Year (11 to 39 employees), Exceptional Small Business of the Year (40 to 100 employees), Outstanding Non-Profit Business (100 or fewer employees), Young Small Business Person of the Year (under the age of 40 as of Oct. 6, 2022) and the Lifetime Achievement Award (any individual doing business in Maui County for more than 20 years, with up to 100 employees).

The submittal process includes completing an online nomination form with an explanation as to how the business meets the award criteria, uploading a letter of recommendation for the business from a source other than the nominator, uploading a high resolution (minimum 300 dpi) digital photograph of the nominee and an optional 30second video of the nominee, their team or the business and/or their products and services in a MP4 format.

No self-nominations, County of Maui or Maui Chamber of Commerce employee nominations will be accepted.

An individual or business can only be nominated in one category per year and any business that has won in a particular category in the past cannot be renominated in that same category but can be nominated for another category.

Nomination forms are available online at www. mauichamber.com with an instructional video.

For more information about nominations, including an instructional video, visit MauiChamber.com or contact the Maui Chamber of Commerce at (808) 2440081 or office@mauichamber.com.