It was a record-setting night at the 20th Annual Oakville Awards for Business Excellence Gala on Wednesday, March 25 where over 600 guests gathered at the Oakville Conference Centre to celebrate business excellence. Presented by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce and The Rotary Club of Oakville West, this annual event attracts business and political leaders, as well as professionals and entrepreneurs from the local business community.
"The Oakville Chamber is thrilled by the tremendous support shown by the business community at tonight's gala," said Chamber Chair, Kerry Colborne. "We offer a sincere congratulations to all the nominees and award recipients."
The award recipients were recognized throughout the course of the evening, interspersed with videos that featured last year's recipients. This year's Business Icon Award was presented to Pelmorex/The Weather Network. Pierre Morrissette, Founder and Chairman of Pelmorex, accepted the award, saying he felt honoured to follow the footsteps of previous recipients, Tim Hortons and Ford Canada.
The inaugural Charity or Not-for-Profit Excellence Award was presented to the Oakville Community Foundation. Rusty Baillie, CEO of the Oakville Community Foundation accepted the award on behalf of the organization.
Sixty-five businesses were finalists this year. The recipients for the 20th Annual Oakville Awards for Business Excellence are:
Oakville's Large Business of the Year
Media Resources International Inc.
Oakville's Entrepreneur of the Year
Oakville's Professional Services Provider of the Year
Oakville's Restaurateur of the Year
Genworth Community Builder of the Year
RBC Small Business of the Year
Oakville's Mid-size Business of the Year
Oakville Hydro Conservation Leadership Award
"We are so pleased by the success of tonight's event," said Bonnie Anderson, President of the Rotary Club of Oakville West. "The Oakville Awards gala raises substantial funds for youth initiatives led by Rotary Club of Oakville West."