Summary

Seven small businesses from King County were honored at the eighth annual King County Executive's Small Business Awards on Thursday at Bellevue's Meydenbauer Center. The winners were chosen by judges from chambers of commerce around the region.

Story

King County Executive Dow Constantine today hosted a ceremony in Bellevue to announce the recipients of this year's Executive Small Business Awards, honoring outstanding achievements by businesses with fewer than 50 employees. 

While King County is known for the being the home to some of the world-leading businesses, more than 95 percent of them are small businesses.

"Our region has a proud tradition of producing and supporting innovators and entrepreneurs," said Executive Constantine. "Their work has given our region a major competitive edge, and it's up to us to ensure that the next generation of thinkers and doers enjoys the same advantages."

Hundreds of nominations were narrowed down to 28 finalists in seven categories, representing 24 of the 39 cities in King County as well as unincorporated areas. Judges from several chambers of commerce around the region selected the winners using criteria like customer service, community involvement, and business model innovation.

The winners are:

• Small Business of the Year: Tomboy X, Seattle
• Minority-Owned Small Business of the Year: Concord Engineering, Seattle
• Woman-Owned Small Business of the Year: Triangle Associates, Seattle
• Exporting Small Business of the Year: Pier2 Marketing, Seattle
• Green/Sustainable Small Business of the Year: Green Cleaning Seattle - Otium-Maid Services, Seattle
• Workforce Development Small Business of the Year: Cognission Corporation/Sponge School, Kirkland
• Rural Small Business of the Year: Reber Ranch, Kent

To be eligible for the Executive's Small Business Awards, nominees must be located in King County, have been in business for at least three years, and have 50 employees or less. 

Relevant links

• Executive's Small Business Awards
• Twitter moments from the award ceremony

Quotes

Small businesses drive the economy of this County – and this country – providing almost half of all jobs and the vast majority of employment opportunities in fields ranging from construction to agriculture. It's an honor to convene this celebration of the achievements of entrepreneurs across King County who have invested their time, their resources, and their hard work into building strong, competitive businesses.

For more information, contact:

Cameron Satterfield, Department of Executive Services, 206-263-9758