Businesses celebrated from across Great Southern as The Dam takes top gong among a number of awards

The growing reputation of The Dam and its associated Cannabis Botanical Distillery has been further enhanced by wins across four categories at this year’s Great Southern Business Awards. The Denmark restaurant has quickly developed a strong reputation since opening in late 2021. At Saturday’s business awards, it was named Great Southern Business of the Year as well as winning the Business Startup category. The Dam chief executive Chelsea Beaton said the awards were the culmination of two years of hard work and were a good reason to “pause for celebration”. “The achievement we’ve had is a product of our staff, our family, the community and many hearts and minds pulling together to create something we hope the region can all be proud of for many years to come,” she said. “We’re so excited to be recognised for our business success but more importantly for the example we hope to set when it comes to sustainable tourism, low waste approach and immersive and meaningful tourism in Denmark and the greater region.” Ms Beaton was also named young business person of the year in recognition of her roles overseeing a number of the businesses within the Raintree Estate, including the Dam and CBD. She said winning the award was “a full circle moment” having previously been fortunate enough to cheer on her parents through their own business achievements. “The moment is made even more special as I’ve grown up in Albany and Denmark as a regional kid and now reside here with my own family as a mum of two, soon to be three kids,” she said. “This award does not come without acknowledging it really does take a village to raise a family and team to build a business. “I couldn’t do what I do each day without the support of our incredible team at The Dam and Cannabis Botanical Distillery, my amazing husband, kids and family.” CBD also won the environment and sustainability award, which founder Matt Beaton said was a vital aspect of a business that wanted to “work with nature” to create something unique. “Everything we do across our day-to-day operations is focused on sustainability and zero-waste approach,” he said. “Built on a philosophy of ‘paddock to planet’, at CBD we use the entire hemp plant to ensure nothing is wasted. “To be recognised for this, and as leaders of the green beverage industry through CBD’s work in a low carbon and energy-efficient approach to distilling is one small step towards big changes we hope to see across business.” Business person of the year was awarded to Preity Dhaliwal, director of The Village Childcare Services. Over the last year, Ms Dhaliwal has continued to expand the number of places VCS can offer through its after-school and vacation care services and has plans to establish a new long daycare service. She said attending the event to celebrate with her team was a definite change of pace from their day-to-day experience working in the childcare sector. “I know this is an individual achievement, but I’m nothing without my team,” she said. “I’m just one person so it was great to celebrate as a business and we had a fantastic night, we danced well into the night.” She said she was surprised by the award, but that being recognised for VCS making a considerable effort to boost childcare availability in Albany was exciting. “The support we get here is amazing and being recognised for the fact we are making a lot of difference to help families is special,” she said. “We haven’t got any feedback directly from the judges at this point but they did say it was very tight and that all the applicants were great.” The annual awards are organised by the Albany Chamber of Commerce and Industry with support from the Katanning Regional Business Association and the Denmark Chamber of Commerce. ACCI chief executive Kristen Pyrz Brown said judges brought different areas of expertise to help narrow a large pool of nominations down to the eventual winners in each category. “Whilst the process was streamlined from years before, we are still very cognisant of the huge amount of effort that goes into just filling in the application,” she said. “To have had so many showcasing their businesses is a testament to how strong our community is in the Great Southern. “The awards received a large number of applications and nominations, resulting in a competitive and diverse pool that made it a challenge for the judges.” She also said it had been exciting to celebrate young talent through the addition of the trainee or apprentice of the year award won by Denon Richards. She said the region’s business community should be proud of its “diversity and innovation”. “From small home-run sole traders, to up-and-coming individuals, and large complex businesses, the Great Southern business community is definitely something to be very proud of,” she said. 2023 Great Southern Business Award Winners Business Person of the Year - Preity Dhaliwal (The Village Childcare Services) Business Startup - The Dam Denmark Business with over 10 Employees - Mount Barker Cooperative Limited Business with up to 10 Employees - The Gardens at Bullimah Employee of the Year - Katie Pope (Synergy Graphics) Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality - Discovery Bay Tourism Precinct Home Based Business - Waves and Wild Innovation in Business - Synergy Graphics Young Business Person of the Year - Chelsea Beaton (The Dam Denmark) Trainee or Apprentice of the Year - Denon Richards (Clarks Tyres) Environment & Sustainability Award - Cannabis Botanical Distillery Food & Beverage Manufacturing - Stirling Ranges Beef Indigenous Organisation of the Year - Kadadjiny Aboriginal Corporation Great Southern Business of the Year -The Dam Denmark