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Celebrating everything from postpartum products to electric motorbikes, the Wellington region’s best and brightest in business were revealed on Wednesday night.
The 52 finalists for the 25th Wellington Gold Awards were announced at an event at Te Wharewaka o Pōneke on Wellington’s Waterfront.
Gold Awards director John Dow said the business community was in “good spirits, resilient and proving adaptable in a challenging economic environment”.
“After years of Covid-related issues, and now facing rising costs, interest rate hikes, skills shortages and political volatility in an election year, many businesses were working more collaboratively, embracing technological capabilities and finding new niches for their products and services,” Dow said.
The Gold Awards were valued by many businesses which saw an opportunity to meet and celebrate together, establishing new constructive business relationships with people they hadn’t met before, he said.
“High quality uniquely local produce, artistic and cultural experiences were being created, and well appreciated by residents and visitors across the whole Wellington region.”
The Gold Awards cover the Wellington region including: Wairarapa, Kāpiti Coast, Porirua, Upper Hutt, Lower Hutt and Wellington City, with Horowhenua also joining for the first time.
Jericho Rock-Archer
Innovative products such as FTN Motion’s Streetdog are being celebrated by the Gold Awards.
The winners will be announced at the Embassy Theatre on August 23. That would also be a celebration of 25 years recognising and acknowledging Wellington’s businesspeople, their organisations, teams and stakeholders, Dow said.
More than 1200 businesses have participated as finalists in the Gold Awards history which began in 1999, and this year saw a record number of entries across all categories.
BRUCE MACKAY/The Post
Annamarie Jamieson, Sophie Paterson and Sophia Burford of Stuff picking up the B-CORP Showcase citation for balancing commercial success with positive social and environmental impacts.
The finalists
Creative Gold – film, media and creative content: Beyond Studio, Contemporary Korowai Designs, Creature, PS/Digital, Psychoactive Designs
Technology Gold for hitech creators: Arlo Software, Global Seismic Data, Medicly, Upstock
Emerging Gold Products: Angel Delivery, Dignity, Law Hawk, Mothers Ruined Gin, Viva La Vulva, We Love Local
Vibrant Gold for events and hospitality: Featherston Booktown, Milky-way.Kiwi, NZ Art Show, NZ Fringe Festival, Sky Stadium, Wairarapa Wines Harvest Festival
Emerging Gold Services: Arete Retreat, Brewtown Farmers Market, Disaster Prepare, NZ Campus of Innovation and Sport, Talent Army
ACC Workplace Safety Gold: KTM Silviculture, Mills Albert, NZ Tube Mills
Global Gold for exporters: Healthy Start, Kaynemaile, Palliser Wines, Raygun
Green Gold for sustainability programmes and products: Garage Project, School of Architecture VUW, Solid, Summit Building Wash Technologies, The Capital Kiwi Project, Wonky Box
Innovation Gold for recent R&D projects: Flexi. Proof of Concept, Head MRI by Paihau Robinson Institute, JNCTN, Performance Institute, Streetdog by FTN Motion
Team Gold for HR and wellness programmes: Creative Capital Arts Trust, Juken NZ, Master Plumbers Gasfitters and Drainlayers, Reason Group, Tu Ora Compass Health
Supporting Gold for services and infrastructure: Armillary, BPM, Cameron Harrison Butchery and Delicatessen, Quantum Security Services, Reason Group
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