Salisbury Business Awards

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay) (15:20): I rise today to talk about the Salisbury Business Awards, in their third year, run by the Salisbury Business Association. It is an opportunity for the community to nominate outstanding businesses in the City of Salisbury area. The Salisbury Business Association is a member-based organisation with a focus on business, particularly in the CBD of Salisbury.

The awards this year were held at the recently renovated Salisbury Hotel. It was a wonderful night, with more than 145 people in attendance. As quoted by some, it was a fantastic night and a great venue with great food, great service and great company. The Salisbury Hotel recently renovated and went out of their way to create an impressive set-up. They made sure that they brought in tables and chairs for the night.

For many people, it was the first time back there since the renovation, and the attendees really were impressed. I was delighted to be joined by the member for Wright, Blair Boyer, for this special night. Also in attendance was the Mayor of the City of Salisbury, Gillian Aldridge. I also acknowledge the president of the association, Stephan Knoll, and members of the committee.

Mr Cregan: Stephan?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It is his uncle. Our MC for the night was Stephen Bloor, Reverend of St John's Anglican Church. There were 11 awards up for grabs on the night. Ten of the awards were people's choice awards and recognised exceptional customer service from traders and local businesses. More than 7,000 votes were received, up from 4,500 in 2018, with members of the public voting for their favourite businesses in the area, nominating more than 80 businesses in the City of Salisbury. That is very impressive. It shows that people were willing to take the time to vote because of outstanding customer service.

This year, in 2019, there was a new award: the Salisbury Business of the Year. For this award, businesses were nominated by their peers and decided by an independent judging panel that selected the winner. That was an exciting drum-roll opportunity, it being the first time for that award. I would like to talk about the winners of the awards. The first was the Automotive Services award and the winner was EP Performance/Exhaust Plus, sponsored by Councillor Reynolds and Councillor Hood. The second award was the Cafe, Hotel or Restaurant award. That is sponsored by me; I have been sponsoring it for three years now and I am very pleased to see that Cafe Sublime are a back-to-back winner of the Salisbury Business Awards. They are located in the Parabanks Shopping Centre.

The third award was the Fresh Food and Grocery award, sponsored by the Parabanks Shopping Centre. That was won for the third time in a row by the Namaste Supermarket, run by Hari and partners, Bhutanese migrants who came here as humanitarian migrants and went on to open their store. The fourth award was the Rising Star/New Business award, which has been operating for less than two years. It is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Salisbury. It was won by a brand-new cafe in John Street, our high street in Salisbury. Congratulations to the Leyan Persian Cafe and Restaurant. They were delighted to be nominated and then to win.

The General Retail award, sponsored by Signarama Salisbury, was won by Flowers by Marissa. Congratulations to the Salisbury florist, who is a back-to-back winner. The Hair and Beauty award, sponsored by the mayor, was won by Hair Centa. The Medical/Allied Health award, sponsored by Councillor Proleta, was won by John Street Pharmacy, who won that award for the third year in a row—congratulations to them.

The Professional Services award went to Pascale Legal, sponsored by the City of Salisbury. As to the Entertainment award, congratulations to Hoyts Salisbury Cinemas, who have done a great investment in upgrading the Salisbury cinema. The Community Services award, sponsored by Blair Boyer, went to the Northern Community Legal Service, recently celebrating 30 years. The Salisbury Business of the Year was none other than The Salisbury Hotel with their big investment and renovation.