Reward for year of toil
AFTER a challenging year for local businesses, the Cairns business community had reason to celebrate at the 2021 JCU Business Excellence Awards (BEX), proudly hosted by Cairns Chamber of Commerce, at which 11 prestigious awards were presented.
“We were so proud to have the opportunity to celebrate some hidden gems, businesses that were quietly battling to make sure they not only survived but thrived during very challenging times,” chamber chief executive Patricia O’Neill said.
“It’s been two years since our last BEX awards as we had to cancel last year due to Covid.”
Almost 350 people attended the sold-out gala ball at Pullman International.
Ms O’Neill said the event was sold out weeks prior to the event and a growing list of individuals anticipated snapping up a rare cancellation to enable them to join the celebrations.
“It was a fantastic response,” she said, adding that there were 200 submissions, and the 71 finalists were judged by a panel of 14 judges.
A new Innovation award, sponsored by Cairns Regional Council, was included in this year’s event and won by Gatha, which also won the Business Technology Award (sponsored by NBN).
Ms O’Neill said the awards also gave winners and finalists the chance to lift their profile in the community and increase their brand awareness.
“Many of these businesses haven’t
had the opportunity to effectively market their businesses lately, therefore being a part of the BEX awards showcased their brands to people who otherwise might not have known of some of them,” she said.
The awards, which started in 2017, recognise outstanding achievements of a wide range of businesses and people and showcase business excellence that contributes to the region.
Professor Sandra Harding, Officer of the Order of Australia and Vice Chancellor and president of James Cook University since 2007, was presented with the distinguished legacy award.
She believes the awards are a very significant recognition for businesses.
“It’s so important to be able to step back and recognise excellence and good work when it’s happening, and
that’s what these awards do,” she said.
“I would like to congratulate the Cairns Chamber because what they’re doing is providing enormous support and encouragement for the business community in our town.
“It is so important, particularly in these tough times, and it also gave people the opportunity to dress up and have a great night out,” Professor Harding said.