News Release For immediate distribution __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Local Businesses in Greater Moncton Shine at Excellence Awards MONCTON (NEW BRUNSWICK) – Saturday, October 20, 2012 - Following last night's Gala, the Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce (GMCC) is proud to announce the winners of its 27th annual Greater Moncton Excellence Awards, presented by Medavie Blue Cross. The goal of the Greater Moncton Excellence Awards is to encourage entrepreneurship by celebrating the excellence of local businesses and entrepreneurs. Nominations were submitted by Chamber members as well as the general public over the summer months. A panel of five judges then selected the winners and finalists among these. The awards were handed out during the Gala on October 19th at the Ramada Plaza Crystal Palace with close to 350 people in attendance. FundyPros Specialty Construction took home the very coveted Excellence in Business Award at the end of the evening. Seven other businesses took home awards in categories which included Marketing, Community Service, Young Entrepreneur, Immigrant Entrepreneur, Emerging Business, Innovation and Environmental Excellence. "Being nominated and receiving an Excellence Award is a unique moment in the life of every business", says GMCC CEO Nancy Whipp. "This recognition among other business leaders and professionals in our community, can certainly open doors in the future." -PLEASE SEE THE FOLLOWING PAGES FOR THE COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS- Photos from the Gala will soon be published on the Chamber of Commerce's website at http://www.gmcc.nb.ca. www.gmcc.nb.ca Excellence in Business Award Sponsored by Medavie Blue Cross, this award is presented to the business or organization that best demonstrates overall excellence in all areas of business operations. Recipient: FundyPros Specialty Construction FundyPros Specialty Construction is the largest speciality construction firm in New Brunswick. Their service offerings include installation of drywall, EIFS (stucco), plaster, flooring, ceilings, steel studs, insulation and firestop for residential or commercial projects. FundyPros is characterised by their continuous efforts to learn and improve, develop an in- house training program and pride themselves on safety practices. FundyPros has grown into a team of some 200 highly skilled professionals from every speciality in construction requirement. Contact information: FundyPros Specialty Construction 91 Englehart Street, Dieppe (506) 383 6466 www.fundypros.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Excellence in Marketing Award Sponsored by Hudson Creative Agency, this award is given to a business that has demonstrated a consistent, innovative and creative marketing approach to reach its target market. Recipient: Docbraces Docbraces was the first in the region to market their services directly to the public and forever changed the orthodontics game. As a result, others in the industry followed the example and competition in the sector increased. As an early adopter of social media, Docbraces successfully leveraged the internet to promote its services. Docbraces innovative marketing approach has significantly increased sales in the last year. Contact information: Docbraces 500 Mapleton Road, Suite 200, Moncton (506) 859 7400 www.docbraces.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Community Service Award Sponsored by Brunswick News, this award is given to a business that has made a significant contribution to the community by supporting charities, festivals, events, community projects and development. Recipient: Festival Frye Festival Frye Festival is Canada’s only bilingual international literary festival and the largest literary event in Atlantic Canada. Every year, the Frye Festival offers diverse and interesting programs to the community. This year, the focus was community involvement, like the Community Read series, meetings with authors, round tables and opportunities for young people to showcase. More than 15,500 people from all over New Brunswick and Atlantic Canada participated in Festival activities improving the positive image of our region. Contact information: Frye Festival Frye CP 26023, Moncton (506) 859 4389 www.frye.ca www.gmcc.nb.ca Young Entrepreneur Award Sponsored by Investors Group, this award is given to one of Greater Moncton's brightest young entrepreneur between the age of 18 and 34. Recipient: Remi Boudreau – Inspired from the Inside Remi Boudreau wants to help people see for themselves what their life could be like by using two paths: through Expressions Painting, where he carved a niche for himself by helping customers to pick new colors for their home or office and then applying them onto their walls. The other, his new venture “Inspired from the Inside”, helps to achieve his and other peoples’ goals with writing, publishing, speaking, producing, singing, song writing and graphic designing. Contact information: Remi Boudreau – Inspired from the inside 220 Magellan Drive, Moncton (506) 855 7246 www.remiboudreau.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Immigrant Entrepreneur Sponsored by Scotiabank, this award is given to an immigrant entrepreneur who has been operating a business in the Greater Moncton area (new or well established), recognizing business and innovative spirit as well as involvement and integration within the Greater Moncton community. Recipient: Café C’est la Vie David (Insoo) Shin of “Cafe C’est la Vie” arrived in Moncton from South Korea in December 2010. Three months later, he took over the café from the former owner and immediately changed the look and feel of the place to turn it into a well know venue in Highfield Square Mall. At that location David organized a fundraising event with mentees and mentors of the BIMP (Business Immigrant Mentorship program) and raised $1,000 to donate to a charitable cause. Recently, Café C’est la Vie moved to a new location on Main Street, and reinforced brand loyalty. Contact information: Café C'est la Vie 785 Main Street, Moncton (506) 854 0994 www.gmcc.nb.ca Emerging Business Award Sponsored by Champlain Place, Cadillac Fairview Corporation, this award is presented to a company that has shown remarkable growth, innovation and leadership in its industry sector during the first three to five years of operations. Recipient: Dr. Brent Howley, Plastic Surgery Dr. Brent Howley, Plastic Surgery saw a growth rate increase from 10% in 2009 to 40% last year. Dr. Brent Howley brought current trends and information regarding plastic/cosmetic surgery to the region and changed ‘the face’ of plastic surgery in the Atlantic Canada. Recently, the company developed a 48,000 square feet facility with partners offering a wide range of services from dental, surgery, orthodontics, skin care and cosmetic surgery, to name only a few. Contact information: Dr. Brent Howley, Plastic Surgery 585 Mapleton Road, Suite 100, Moncton (506) 853 5164 www.drhowley.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Innovation Sponsored by the Greater Moncton International Airport, this award is given to a business that has created a new and unique business concept or has applied innovative improvements to existing processes, products or services. There must be a degree of success associated with the utilization of the innovation, with productivity improvements and/or increased sales as a result. Recipient: Matt LeBlanc Art Matt Leblanc is a self-taught modern abstract artist living and working in Dieppe. Matt started offering his artwork to the public in 2007. His career has grown rapidly since then and Matt sold thousands of paintings to individuals, businesses, and interior designers all over the world. A highly skilled self-promoter, Matt’s has created a huge worldwide fan base and enjoys spending time connecting with his fans and promoting the Matt LeBlanc Art brand. Contact Information: Matt LeBlanc Art 47 Bliss-Noiles Street, Dieppe (506) 850-3790 www.mattleblancart.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Environmental Excellence Award Sponsored by Greater Moncton Home Builders’ Association, this award is given to a business or organization that has demonstrated strong environmental leadership through its policies and practices in order to improve ecological sustainability and reduce its impact on the environment. Recipient: Westmorland Albert Solid Waste Corporation The facility has been developing a landfill gas system that captures all methane (a potent greenhouse gas) from the landfill cells. Collecting the methane and converting it into carbon dioxide by burning through the flare greatly reduces the impact of methane as a greenhouse gas on the environment. Another project Westmorland Albert Solid Waste Corporation is working on is the Styrofoam recycling program. Since 2010, well over 100 tonnes of Styrofoam have been sent for recycling. Contact information: Westmorland Albert Solid Waste Corporation Old Route 128 Rd , Berry Mills (506) 877 1050 www.westmorlandalbert.com www.gmcc.nb.ca Since 1891, the Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce has been the voice of the business community. The Chamber is an independent business organization with over 875 members, representing more than 30 000 employees within this community. The Chamber provides its members with opportunities to connect, grow their business, and prosper. Learn more by visiting our website at www.gmcc.nb.ca. -30- Information: Nancy Whipp, CEO, Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce Tel: 506-857-2883 Email: [email protected] www.gmcc.nb.ca .