MEMBERS of the local business community gathered in Bridgwater on Friday for the launch of this year's Sedgemoor Business Awards.
Around 25 people, including chamber board directors and award sponsors, met at the town's Ibis hotel to learn about the categories and application process.
There were also networking opportunities and a presentation by Becky Wright of New Leaf Workplace Wellbeing encouraging sustainable business practices.
Businesses in attendance were asked to encourage others to nominate themselves for awards and help judge the categories they have sponsored.
Nominations are free and open until 5pm on Friday, September 30, and the awards ceremony will be held on Friday, November 25.
Denys Rayner, chair of Bridgwater Chamber of Commerce, believes the application process could help businesses promote themselves more effectively.
He said: “Businesses locally are not very good at telling people how good they are.
“These awards are a great opportunity to be able to internally reflect on their good qualities and what they do well, and then be able to actively promote that to others.
“We found that many businesses get some really valuable promotion out of this.”
He added: “I would say now, especially with the oncoming recession, I think businesses will have to promote themselves as much as they possibly can, and this is a fantastic opportunity to do so.”
“We’ve been doing this for a number of years now, and we’re really keen to be able to promote businesses in Sedgemoor and make them feel good about themselves.
“Businesses will find it beneficial – even if they don’t win – just to go through the process.”
The awards ceremony will be held at The Canalside Conference Centre and promises to be the best yet.
“We will be building on the success of previous years,” said Denys.
“It’s always a great meal, and then we’ll have the awards ceremony, which will be a real opportunity for businesses to celebrate – even if they don’t win.
“It’s always been a great evening, and every year has gotten better.”
A new category for this year is the Sustainability/Low Carbon Award that will allow businesses to show the work they are doing to reduce their carbon footprint.
You can see the full list of awards or nominate your business by visiting www.sedgemoorbusinessawards.org.uk.
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