The finalists for the 2024 Bega Valley Business Awards have been announced. or signup to continue reading More than 1600 nominations were received across the 18 categories, . This year there are 19 finalists from Bega, 11 from Pambula, seven from Eden and Merimbula, five from Cobargo, four from Tathra, as well as finalists from Bemboka, Bermagui and even Buckajo.
Some categories stood out with public nominations, like hospitality receiving 360 nominations for 60 different businesses, while retail received 186 nominations for 60 businesses. However, the number of nominations was only one factor in the judging process, with judges also utilising secret shopper visits to finalise the shortlist. Bega Valley Business Forum president Nigel Ayling, said judges were really impressed with the response this year.
"It was great to see so many nominations and a lot of businesses being nominated for the first time," Mr Ayling said. "This year we introduced some refined criteria for the judging including giving extra weight to some smaller locations and capping the impact of the number of nominations. "It is definitely not a popularity contest where the business with the most nominations wins.
"It was hard work narrowing some categories down to just three finalists, so the ones that have made it this far, really deserve to be there." The full list of finalists are: Sapphire Coast Buslines Grow The Future Tarthra Eco Camp Cheryl's Personal Services Tulgeen Disability Services Workability Ed.
