A celebration of the best in the community and local business was held Saturday at Olympic View Golf Club.
The Westshore Chamber of Commerce’s Best of the West Shore awards saw businesses and community places honoured by the public, through the chamber’s online and paper balloting campaign.
“I believe this was a phenomenal success,” said chamber president Doug Kobayashi. “We’re just going to continue to expand the awards and make this an even better event.”
The awards gala and dinner sold out for the first time, he noted, a sign that the level of support is growing.
The big winners on the night were Saunders Subaru, which won for business of the year as the “best business citizen in the West Shore,” and Origin Bakery in Colwood, for “best new business opened within the past two years.”
“We’ve made the awards a lot more diverse (in terms of categories), and we let the public choose, which was different this year,” Kobayashi said.
Reminding people to shop local is behind the Best of the West Shore Awards, he added.
“That’s one of the biggest drives right now. These are the very businesses who are supporting teams, the volunteers on committees, the people like me who are serving on chambers.”
Other award winners on the night:
Community service — Goldstream Food Bank
Environmental stewardship — Royal Roads University
Taste of Excellence (best new food service) — Brown’s Social House
Healthy as a Horse (best veterinary care) — Juan de Fuca Veterinary Clinic
I’m Sexy and I know It (best aesthetics/hair service) — Santé Spa
Fittest Business (best gym/fitness studio) — Bikram Yoga West Shore
Work Hard, Play Hard (best recreation provider) — WildPlay Element Park
Bring Home the Bacon (best independent grocery store) — Quality Foods
Shop Till You Drop (best new retail goods business) — Capital Iron West Shore
Show Me the Money (best bank or credit union) — Coast Capital Savings
The Old and the New (best attraction historical site) — Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse
If You Build It (best recent or ongoing development project) — Westhills
In the best community places categories, Thetis Lake was the most popular recreational spot, earning the nod for favourite place to hike, to take a summer swim and to walk your dog.
Favourite fishing spot was Langford Lake, favourite beach was Esquimalt Lagoon, top bicycle trail was the Galloping Goose, best viewpoint was Mount Finlayson and favourite local sports team was the Victoria Grizzlies.
For more information on the Chamber of Commerce, visit westshore.bc.ca.
editor@goldstreamgazette.com
