The top five finalists have been announced for 14th annual Small Business BC Awards and Cranbrook’s The Heidout Restaurant & Brewhouse remains in the running for an award.

Small Business BC (SBBC), the province’s premier resource for entrepreneurs, and the Insurance Bureau of Canada asked British Columbians to nominate their favourite small businesses for the 14th Annual Small Business BC Awards between October 1 and November 30, 2016. This year, 699 nominations from 72 communities across the province and over 32,000 votes were received.

The Small Business BC Awards is the largest small business awards competition in the province. These awards recognize the outstanding achievements of British Columbia’s entrepreneurs and celebrate the contributions new and existing businesses registered in B.C., with fewer than 50 employees, make to their local communities and the global economy.

Those who activated their communities and received the most votes between October 1 and November 30, 2016 were named the Top 10 Semi-Finalists on December 12, 2016 and invited to submit a more detailed application. These applications were used to decide the Top five Finalists in this year’s competition.

The Heidout Restaurant & Brewhouse is in the running for Best Apprentice Training award.

Heidi Romich has been a proponent, promoter and driving force of training and apprenticeships in the community of restaurateurs, both in Cranbrook and in the province. Her establishment is well-respected for quality of food and service. She has five Red Seal chefs employed there and has been highly instrumental in their training.

Her involvement with the Industry Training Authority (ITA) is lengthy, and includes one of the first successful challenges of the revised ITA standards in 1991 – an individual (still employed by her) had worked years in the industry, performing the tasks of an Executive Chef, but had not been able to pass the written exam, notes the SBBC on its website.

“ITA instituted a challenge process where a prospective Chef could be given an oral exam, observed at work through a # of days and preparations. She has also for many years been an integral part of the instruction and operations team with the College of the Rockies Culinary Arts Program where her expertise and support of the training has been invaluable,” it concluded.

Winners will be announced at the 14th Annual Small Business BC Awards Ceremony at the Pan Pacific Vancouver on Thursday, February 23, during an evening of drinks, appetizers and networking with 500 B.C. business owners, industry influencers, government officials and special guests.

Recipients of Small Business BC Awards will be recognized with the Premier’s Prize in the amount of $1,500 cash, a one-year all-access pass to Small Business BC education, resources and experts, and one-on-one business mentorship with notable advisors from the award sponsors.

“Small businesses are the backbone of Canada’s leading economy, responsible for creating over a million jobs in B.C. That’s why we worked hard to become the most small business-friendly jurisdiction in North America. Congratulations to all the Top 5 Finalists for being recognized as innovative, responsible pillars in their community,” stated Premier Christy Clark.

The Heidout Restaurant & Brewhouse, with about 45 employees, has been in operation in downtown Cranbrook since 2013. However, it was known as Heidi’s Restaurant for many years prior to ’13.

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