The Fernie Chamber of Commerce has announced the finalists for the 2021 Business Excellence Awards.
Chamber executive director Brad Parsell says 491 nominations were submitted, setting a record for the annual awards presentation.
“Far and away the most nominations that have ever been cast for a Fernie Business Awards,” Parsell says. “They are really speaking to how much local businesses are valued, especially through this pandemic, which has obviously been an extremely difficult time for a lot of our businesses.”
Among the finalists are Dave Morrison, Keegan Street, and Mark Hall for Businessperson of the Year, and Edge of the World, Fernie Brewing Co. and Rooftop Coffee Roasters for Fernie Business of the Year.
Parsell says the winners will be announced at a live ceremony streamed online, and attended by only the finalists.
“I can’t wait to get back to a day where we have 180 of Fernie’s brightest and finest in a room together celebrating with the finalists,” he says. “It’s going to be great to have a few people in the room but I can’t wait to get back to this event if full steam in 2022.”
A list of finalists can be found here or below.
The Fernie Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the finalists for this year’s Fernie Business Excellence Awards.
There were a record 491 total nominations cast for the awards this year which is an amazing testament to how much local businesses are valued by the community.
Businesses that were nominated were asked to complete an awards application that was forwarded to an independent panel of judges from outside the Fernie area.
These judges have determined the three finalists in each category as well as the winners – which will be announced on Friday 29 October.
The exceptions to this were the People’s Choice Award, the Chamber Legacy Award, and the Citizen of the Year. Any business that was nominated was in the running for the People’s Choice Award and voting was open to the public with hundreds of votes cast.
The Chamber Legacy Award and the Citizen of the Year are selected by the Fernie Chamber of Commerce board of directors, and will be announced at the awards event.
Brad Parsell (Executive Director of the Fernie Chamber) explains, “This is by far our favorite event of the year, and we are so appreciative of the outstanding achievements of our local businesses. Despite the pandemic, chronic labour shortages and other challenges thrown at us this past year – our business community continues to find innovative and creative ways to serve their customers. On behalf of the Fernie Chamber, I want to sincerely congratulate all nominees and finalists.”
There will be an invite-only awards ceremony held on Friday 29 October at 6:00 pm for finalists and sponsors.
The event will be live streamed on the Fernie Chamber Facebook page for the general public to view.
Please find a full list of the 2021 Fernie Business Excellence Awards finalists below.
For more information on this year’s awards click here.
Award Finalists:
| Community Tourism Achievement Sponsored by Tourism Fernie
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Employer of the Year Sponsored by College of The Rockies
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Fernie Business of the Year Sponsored by North Coal
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| Environmental Sustainability Sponsored by Fernie Fox Hotel
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Business Innovation Sponsored by East Kootenay Community Credit Union
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Businessperson of the Year Sponsored by The Free Press
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| Community Group of the Year Sponsored by Columbia Basin Trust
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New Business of the Year Sponsored by Fernie Alpine Resort
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Outstanding Customer Service Sponsored by Western Financial Group
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| People’s Choice Award Sponsored by Rockies Law Corporation
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– Submitted by the Fernie Chamber of Commerce
– Brad Parsell, Executive Director for the Fernie Chamber of Commerce
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