No doubt about it: Estevan has a very diverse business community.
And it shows in this year鈥檚 Estevan Mercury Best of Estevan contest, with the number of businesses that won awards and the total number of awards presented.
The awards were grouped into nine different categories for people to vote on; the number of awards in each category ranged from as low as nine to as high as 32.
And while some businesses won more than one award, more than 125 businesses captured awards this year.
Deanna Tarnes, who is the publisher and sales manager at the Mercury, said the idea behind Best of Estevan is to remind the public that they can get every single thing they need here.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 why we do it, is to promote our local businesses and just show people that no matter what category you come up with, you can get it in Estevan,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e like to showcase our local businesses.鈥�
Thousands of votes were received for the competition. The ballot appeared in the Mercury on Feb. 19 and 26, as well as March 4, and in 小蓝视频east Lifestyles on Feb. 21 and 28. People could fill out their ballot and drop it off at the Mercury鈥檚 office.
The ballot was also posted on the Estevan Mercury鈥檚 website, www.estevanmercury.ca. Due to the number of awards, the ballots had to be broken up into three components. Nearly 2,400 people visited the Best of Estevan tab on the website during the voting period.
鈥淚t was a pretty even mix of print and online votes,鈥� said Tarnes, who was pleased with the number of people who took the time to go through the ballots and fill them out.
Those who voted for at least 25 awards were entered to win $100 cash.
She also thanked everyone who took the time to vote.
鈥淓verybody is busy and has things to do, and took the time. It鈥檚 nice to see,鈥� she said.
Even though the contest was offered just two years ago, there was a lot of change in the award recipients. Some of the winners are long-standing businesses who didn鈥檛 win two years earlier, others are new businesses in the community.
鈥淧eople have diversified to stick with the ever-changing markets, and are trying some different things,鈥� she said.
Tarnes noted there were some surprises as well and some businesses won multiple awards. And of course, there were some long-standing businesses who won this time around, just like they did in 2018 and the first time Best of Estevan was offered back in 2011.
Certificates from 2018 and even 2011 can still be found on the walls of local businesses, who are proud to be voted as the Best of Estevan.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to acknowledge the different businesses,鈥� Tarnes said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e only here because of them.鈥�
Certificates are also a good form of in-house marketing, as it鈥檚 a way for people to know the services that are offered.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice that people see value in 小蓝视频 awarded something from us,鈥� said Tarnes.
The businesses who win a Best of Estevan award will receive a framed certificate to hang, as well as recognition for their success. All of the ads from this publication will be posted in a photo gallery on the Mercury鈥檚 website.
And there鈥檚 also the element of bragging rights.
Tarnes stressed that while many businesses won awards for Best of Estevan, there are many others in the city who would be worthy of recognition in different categories as well. Many of the awards had numerous deserving recipients.
鈥淭here are so many businesses who do great things who didn鈥檛 win in a certain category that they may be associated with,鈥� said Tarnes. 鈥淭hey still do great things as well. Many of the votes were close.鈥�
