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Bass Coast Shire Council announces finalists for 2025 Business Awards, celebrating local excellence and innovation

Bass Coast Shire Council announced the 2025 Business Awards finalists, celebrating local excellence, innovation and strong community support across Judged and People's Choice categories, with nearly 2,000 votes cast.

By news@gippsland - 4th July 2025 - Back to News

The finalists are in! Bass Coast Shire Council is excited to reveal the finalists for the 2025 Bass Coast Business Awards, a celebration of the excellence, innovation, and passion that powers our local business community.

Photo taken from 2024 Bass Coast Business Awards - Celebrate local business excellence at the 2025 Bass Coast Business Awards Night - dinner, drinks, dessert, and everyone's welcome!

Celebrating local success

Each year, the Awards shine a spotlight on local success stories through two streams: the Judged Awards, recognising outstanding performance and innovation, and the People's Choice Awards, where our community champions the businesses they love most.

This year's Judged Awards attracted 46 entries, a strong signal that forward-thinking and entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Bass Coast. Business Innovation proved to be the most popular category, followed closely by New Business. Expertly judged thanks to our amazing independent judges who volunteer their time to judge the submissions.

When it came to the People's Choice Awards, the support was just as strong. Nearly 2,000 votes were cast across the 7 categories, impressively recognising 149 different businesses. It's a number that might surprise some, how many local businesses could you name? It shows just how broad, connected and valued our local economy truly is.

Food favourites celebrated

No surprises in a region known for its passionate producers and paddock-to-plate experiences, Food and Beverage stood out as the most popular People's Choice category, with the highest number of business nominations and almost a quarter of all votes.

It's clear our community has a real appetite for great local produce and hospitality, with standout finalists like Beachside Bakehouse, Harman Wines, and Hotel Phillip Island all in the running.

Celebrate business success

Bass Coast Mayor, Cr Rochelle Halstead said the Awards are a chance to stop and recognise just how far our local businesses have come, "I talk to business owners every day and I'm constantly blown away by their passion, adaptability and drive, whether they've been in the game for decades or just starting out."

"I hope everyone who entered the awards takes a moment to reflect on how far they've come. These awards are your night to celebrate your achievements, enjoy a well-earned night off, and connect with others who are building something special here in Bass Coast - especially in a year where nearly 150 businesses were nominated by the community itself," Cr Halstead said.

Winners will be announced at our Celebration Night on Friday, 22 August, at Silverwater Resort in San Remo. Whether you're there to cheer on your business, connect with industry leaders, or get inspired to throw your hat in the ring next year, this is the night for it. Tickets are now available at Eventbrite website.

Judged awards finalists

Access, Equity and Inclusion

• Empowered Lactation Consulting
• Phillip Island Tenpin Bowling & Entertainment Centre
• Southcoast Psychology

Business Innovation

• Empowered Lactation Consulting
• Inverloch Bike Hire
• Trent Allen Building Pty Ltd

Environmental Sustainability

• Hycon Homes Pty Ltd
• Phillip Island Tenpin Bowling & Entertainment Centre
• San Remo Fisherman's Co-op

Event Excellence

• Bass Coast Yoga Festival
• Inverloch Running Festival
• Ocean Sounds 2025 (The Hills Are Alive Group)

Marketing and Communications

• Coast to Coast Conveyancing
• Made. By Bronte
• Phillip Island Tenpin Bowling & Entertainment Centre

New Business

• Made. By Bronte
• Mates Gin Distillery Pty Ltd
• Phillip Island Sauna

People's Choice Awards finalists

Accommodation and Tourism Attraction

• Anchor Belle Holiday Park
• Maru Koala and Animal Park
• Wildlife Coast Cruises

Food and Beverage

• Beachside Bakehouse
• Harman Wines
• Hotel Phillip Island

Hair and Beauty

• H Bombs Barbershop
• Studio 13
• Urban Hair

Health and Lifestyle

• Bass Coast Support Work Services
• Phillip Island Sauna
• Voyage Fitness Wonthaggi

Online, Mobile and Home-Based Business

• Empowered Lactation Consulting
• Foodies on Phillip Island
• Made. By Bronte

Retail and Services

• Bass Coast Boat & Caravan Storage
• Dalyston General Store
• San Remo Butchers

Trade

• Bass Coast Carpentry and Maintenance
• ESI Solutions
• McKenzie Motors and Machinery

Thank you to our sponsors. Without their support, this event wouldn't be possible:

• Venue Sponsor - Silverwater Resort
• Platinum Sponsors - Telstra and Westernport Water
• Gold Sponsors - Destination Phillip Island, Harman Wines, nbn, Phillip Island Business Network, RSL Phillip Island and Watersure
• Silver Sponsors - Dead4eva Designs & Tattooing, Interchange Gippsland, Mac & Ernie and Maru Koala & Animal Park

For more information about the awards please go to 2025 Bass Coast Business Awards website.

Pictures from Bass Coast Shire Council Facebook page.

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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