A strong summer beckons and the future looks bright for this year’s Supreme Award winners at the Tompkins Wake Rotorua Business Awards.
Rotorua Canopy Tours has made history at this year’s awards. The world-renowned eco-tourism operator was believed to be the first company in the event’s 34-year history to win the Supreme Award twice.
The awards were announced at a gala event at the Energy Events Centre on Saturday night.
There were 59 finalists across 14 categories, with 17 winners receiving awards.
A team of 24 judges shortlisted leading entries. Each finalist was in the running for the Supreme Award.
Rotorua Canopy Tours first won the top accolade nine years ago.
Now under new ownership, they have done it again, winning the Manaakitanga Tourism and Hospitality, and Kaitiakitanga Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change categories on the way.
Canopy Tours general manager Paul Button said the win was “incredible” recognition for the team after years of hard work.
He said the business operated on consistency, showing up day after day. Being able to share the night with almost the entire team made it even more special.
Button said highlights over the past year included Canopy Tours being named the number one tourism activity in New Zealand, the South Pacific and the world for the fifth consecutive year, and progress in its soil carbon and biodiversity research.
The company’s focus now was refining the visitor experience while continuing its environmental mahi.
He said forward bookings for summer were strong, particularly from international markets, and the team was optimistic for the season ahead.
Rotorua Business Chamber president Paul Ingram said Canopy Tours continued to set the benchmark for business excellence, with a combination of vision, innovation and long-term contribution to Rotorua’s economy and environment.
Ingram described their focus as “unwavering”.
He said the business had remained innovative and customer-focused since it first launched its zipline experience 13 years ago, gaining international and local attention for its professionalism and environmental commitment.
Ingram said the company’s focus on safety, leadership, staff development and community engagement created an experience that went “far beyond the tree canopy”.
He said Canopy Tours was a world-class operator whose work had supported the regeneration of native forest and birdlife for future generations.
“We are proud to recognise the whole team’s efforts with the Supreme Award this year,” Ingram said.
Last year Te Puia New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute claimed the Supreme Award at the awards after surviving three of the most tumultuous years in its 60-plus year history during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Another standout of the night was first-time entrant House of Elliott Hairdressing, which took home the NZME People’s Choice Award.
Owner Craig Elliott said the recognition meant “the world” to his five-person team.
He said many of his staff had been with the business for more than 20 years, and being acknowledged through a public vote reflected the strong community relationships they’d built over decades.
Elliott said the salon prided itself on a “cradle-to-grave” culture, working with generations of clients from newborns to grandparents and building trust through long-term care.
Category sponsors and winners of this year’s Tompkins Wake Rotorua Business Awards:
PAK’nSAVE Rotorua – CREATIVE ARTS & DESIGN: Te Puia NZMACI Limited Partnership
Bioeconomy Science Institute | Scion Group – INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY: Cetogenix
Ebbett Rotorua – RETAIL: STOKEDNZ
RotoruaNZ – MANAAKITANGA TOURISM & HOSPITALITY: Rotorua Canopy Tours
Pukeroa Oruawhata Holdings – PRIMARY MANUFACTURING & BUILDING: Top Gear Trailers
Osbornes Funeral Directors – PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: Peak Safety Training
Unison – KAITIAKITANGA ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY & CLIMATE CHANGE: Rotorua Canopy Tours
NZME – PEOPLE’S CHOICE: House of Elliott Hairdressing
Te Puia NZMACI Limited Partnership – EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR: Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland
Te Puia NZMACI Limited Partnership – EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR (Highly Commended): United First National Real Estate and Property Management
Mountain Jade – BILINGUAL BUSINESS: Arataua Media
Timberlands Limited – WORKPLACE SAFETY AND WELLBEING: Mills-Tui Limited
Montana Food and Events – NOT FOR PROFIT & SOCIAL ENTERPRISE: Taiohi Tūrama – Rotorua Centre for Youth
Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology – EMERGING BUSINESS LEADER: Renee Tapsell, Aotearoa Dive
Red Stag Timber – BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR: Jeremy Wells, Kilwell Group
Rotorua Lakes Council – OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO ROTORUA: Bioeconomy Science Institute | Scion Group
Tompkins Wake – SUPREME AWARD: Rotorua Canopy Tours
Annabel Reid is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, based in Rotorua. Originally from Hawke’s Bay, she has a Bachelor of Communications from the University of Canterbury.