The Peterborough and the Kawarthas Chamber of Commerce has announced both selected award recipients and all the finalists for the 20th annual Peterborough Business Excellence Awards.
Imad Mahfouz and Hashem Yakan of Levantine Grill have been both been named Immigrant Entrepreneur of the Year. The pair opened the restaurant, which serves a variety of Mediterranean foods including shawarma, kebabs, pies, and salads, at the corner of Park and Charlotte streets in Peterborough in 2022. Coming to Canada from Syria with his family in 2015 to escape the war, Mahfouz is a chef who previously owned a restaurant in Damascus, while Yakan is a banker with a master’s degree in business management. The two men met in Peterborough and discovered they shared the same dream of opening a restaurant.
The chamber has also announced Nicole Truman of Fox Law Professional Corporation is the Businesswoman of the Year, an award sponsored by the Women’s Business Network of Peterborough, and the Payne family of Asphodel Sheep Company is the Peterborough County Farm Family of the Year. Ashley Bonner, Ashley Flynn, Lauren Hunter, and Laura Montague are the recipients of the chamber’s 4-under-40 Profiles.
Three finalists in each of 15 award categories have also been announced. A full list is provided below.
The 2023 awards ceremony will take place in person on the evening of Wednesday, October 18th at Showplace Performance Centre in downtown Peterborough, with a pre-show party at The Venue. Tickets are available for $55 (plus HST) until September 18, and $65 (plus HST) thereafter.
Tickets are available at pkexcellence.ca/tickets.
Here are the already-announced award recipients followed by award categories and finalists to be announced at the October 18th awards ceremony.
Announced award recepients
Businesswoman of the Year
- Nicole Truman (Fox Law Professional Corporation)
Immigrant Entrepreneur of the Year
- Imad Mahfouz & Hashem Yakan (Levantine Grill)
Peterborough County Farm Family of the Year
- Todd & Jennifer Payne & Family (Asphodel Sheep Company)
4-under-40 Profiles
- Ashley Bonner
- Ashley Flynn
- Lauren Hunter
- Laura Montague
- Emma Olstad (Trent University)
- TBA (Fleming College)
- Cheeks Ahoy
- Flossophy Ptbo
- Y Drive Canada
- Black Rock Developments
- Bruce Maly Plumbing & Drain Services Inc.
- Van de Bor Paving Ltd.
- Kawartha Country Wines
- Otonabee Region Conservation Authority
- Peterborough Museum & Archives
- Living Local Marketplace
- Merrett Home Hardware Building Centre
- Plant Goals
- Community Futures Peterborough
- INSPIRE: The Women’s Portrait Project
- Showplace Performance Centre
- The Boardwalk Board Game Lounge
- Chemong Home Hardware Building Centre
- The Willow Studio
- The Boardwalk Board Game Lounge
- New Beginnings Building Services
- Peterborough GreenUP
- Key Design Inc. (Key Design Inc. Studio & Office)
- Peterborough Housing Corporation (Hunt Terraces)
- Peterborough Humane Society (Peterborough Animal Care Centre)
- Engage Engineering Ltd.
- Fox Law Professional Corporation
- Lett Architects Inc.
- Cheeks Ahoy
- The Land Canadian Adventures Inc.
- Peterborough Folk Festival
- Euphoria Wellness Spa
- The Spa + Clinic at Fleming College
- The Willow Studio
- Habitat for Humanity Peterborough & Kawartha Region
- Kawartha-Haliburton Children’s Foundation
- Peterborough Humane Society
- Engage Engineering Ltd.
- Gauvreau | Accounting Tax Law Advisory
- Hospice Peterborough
- OmniWorx Design
- Peterborough Currents Media Inc.
- Social Kat Media
- Burleigh Falls Inn & Suites
- Nostimo By The Original Greek
- Taso’s Restaurant & Pizzeria
Business Student Leadership Prizes
Award finalists (winners to be announced at awards ceremony)
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Skilled Trades
Tourism
Retail
Marketing & Promotion
Customer First
Local Focus
Commercial Development or Renovation
Professional Services
Green Initiatives
Health & Wellness
Not-for-Profit
Employer of the Year
Micro Business – Fewer than 5 employees
Hospitality
Awards to be announced at ceremony
President’s Award
Business Citizen of the Year
