Hastings businesses to be celebrated in awards

Sazio is a finalist for New Business of the Year and the Customer Experience Award. Photo / NZME

A range of Hastings businesses have been announced as finalists in the 2021 NZME Hastings City Celebration Awards.

The awards are run by the Hastings City Business Association and aim to recognise and raise the bar for Hastings CBD businesses.

The judging panel completed judging over four weeks.

First-time judge Emma Murphy says she found the process of hearing how business owners had turned their business dreams into reality "really inspiring".

Awards entrants opened up their businesses to scrutiny from the judges and received an outside perspective and feedback.

"The attention that the winners of each category receive can give these businesses a real boost, this makes entering such a worthwhile exercise," judge Regan Cotter says.

The NZME Supreme Award Winner will be chosen from all of the category finalists.

For the Customer Experience Award, sponsored by Hastings District Council, the nominees were Bed, Bath and Beyond; Cascara; Colab Cafe; Cupple; and Sazio.

Voting for this category was open to the public and opened July 6 and closed July 20.

In the Retail of the Year category, sponsored by The Lean Hub, the finalists are Richard James Jeweller, Storage Box and Tile Shed.

The finalists in Hospitality of the Year, sponsored by Gollins Commercial, are Brave Brewing Co, Little Blackbird Eatery & Cafe and The Artisan Cafe.

Cameo - Skin, Body, Beauty; Hair Envy and Maxim Barbers are the finalists in the Health or Beauty of the Year category sponsored by EIT.

The finalists for Social Enterprise of the Year, sponsored by Common Room, are Budget First, Heretaunga Women's Centre and Spaceship.

Hail Environmental, Sazio and Soothe My Soul are finalists for New Business of the Year, sponsored by Hastings Hive.

Up for CBD Ambassador of the Year, sponsored by BWR Accounting, are Jenny Nilsson from House of Travel Hastings, Rob and Barb Hansen from Hansen Property Group and The Lean Hub team.

The Business Resilience Award, sponsored by Toitoi – Hawke's Bay Arts & Events Centre, will be awarded to either House of Travel, Mitzi & Twinn Catering or The Lean Hub.

The awards ceremony will be held Thursday, August 26, 6pm at Toitoi – Hawke's Bay Arts & Events Centre. Tickets cost $50 or $275 for a table of six and are available through Ticketek.