It was announced today that the finalists in the Small Firms Association (SFA) National Small Business Awards 2020 have been officially chosen.
The aim of the awards is to celebrate the achievements of small business in Ireland, and to recognise the vital contribution of the small business sector to Irish industry.
The SFA National Small Business Awards are now entering their sixteenth year and are a celebration of small business owners who in the past five years created over 75,000 jobs. The 267,000 small firms in Ireland employ half of the private sector workforce and the awards aim to promote excellence, achievement and innovation amongst these companies in all sectors and parts of the country.
The Awards prize package for ALL finalists includes participation in the SFA Business Connect event on February 6, 2020, a strategic management masterclass weekend, as well as broad-ranging national and local media coverage, all valued at €50,000.
Finalists also receive five complimentary tickets to the gala prize giving ceremony which will take place in the RDS on March 12, 2020 when the category winners and overall winner will be announced.
The category winners will be presented with a trophy and free membership of the Small Firms Association for one year. The overall winner will also receive a bursary of €5,000 to present to a charity of their choice (funded by the 2013 Overall Winner, Megazyme International Ireland).
Speaking this week, An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, TD, who is Patron of the Awards, said, "Small and medium businesses make a huge contribution to the Irish economy and the SFA awards are a fabulous and timely opportunity to recognise the talent and innovation in the Irish SME sector."
41 companies have been selected as finalists, from 12 different counties, across 9 categories.
MANUFACTURING CATEGORY FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by NSAI:
KORE Insulation, Cavan
Big Red Barn, Mayo
Kells Traditional Timber Windows & Doors, Meath
Carlow Concrete, Carlow
Green Angel, Dublin
FOOD & DRINK CATEGORY FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by Bord Bia:
Baggot Street Wines, Dublin
Food at Fishers, Wicklow
Kettles Country House Hotel, Dublin
The Tipperary Cheese Company, Tipperary
Camerino Bakery, Dublin
Ice Cream Treats, Cavan
SERVICES CATEGORY FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by Vodafone:
Etag Fixings Ireland, Dublin
On-site Refueling, Dublin
Riverside Spa, Cavan
SimoTech, Cork
T&I Fitouts, Kildare
Hero Recruitment, Galway
OUTSTANDING SMALL BUSINESS FINALISTS (up to five employees), sponsored by One4All:
BusterBox, Dublin
Gill Opticians, Dublin
Scattery Island Tours, Clare
Smart Business Analytics, Westmeath
Mattress Mick, Dublin
Child Paths, Dublin
INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by Permanent tsb:
Big Red Barn, Mayo
Equine MediRecord, Kildare
Ice Cream Treats, Cavan
Terra NutriTECH, Kildare
Woodco Renewable Energy, Tipperary
Zevo Health, Dublin
SUSTAINABILITY FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland:
KORE Insulation, Cavan
MBSL, Dublin
Vivid Edge, Dublin
Shoe Lane Coffee, Dublin
EXPORTER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS (up to 50 employees), sponsored by Enterprise Ireland:
Carlow Concrete, Carlow
IMS Marketing, Galway
Smarter Surfaces, Dublin
Adams & Butler, Dublin
BusterBox, Dublin
Big Red Barn, Mayo
WORKPLACE WELLBEING (up to 50 employees), sponsored by DeCare Dental:
Interactions, Wicklow
Guardian Safety, Dublin
IMS Marketing, Galway
AVCOM, Dublin
EMERGING NEW BUSINESSES (up to 50 employees and under 2 years in business), sponsored by IE Domain Registry:
Vitztronics Smart Solutions, Kildare
Buildtech, Dublin
Soothing Solutions, Meath
The Salt Rooms, Meath
Vanguard Health Services International, Dublin
Source: www.businessworld.ie
