Brainerd Lakes Area Businesses Recognized at 2022 Celebration of Excellence

It was the biggest night of the year for area businesses when the Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce held their Celebration of Excellence on Thursday, where 1,000-plus chamber members were recognized for their accomplishments and leadership experience.

The Celebration of Excellence is an annual awards show that brings in businesses from not only the Brainerd Lakes Area but also Pequot Lakes and Crosslake. Every year, the Brainerd Lakes Chamber rallies everyone together to honor a large group of a businesses and outstanding individuals, and to change over their board members.

The process of how a business is picked for recognition starts in the spring with a committee that receives nominations and applications for each award. The committee reads each application and uses a scoring system to determine who the winners will be. They also discuss each one to make sure they are all in agreement on who should be receiving an award. After the votes have been counted, they announce them and started preparing for the event.

Multiple trophies given throughout the night, and the three major major awards that were given out were:

• Lakes Small Business of the Year – Kavanaugh’s Sylvan Lake Resort
• Business Excellence Award – Lindar, Avantech, Trivant
• Business Legacy Award – Breezy Point Resort

All the money raised throughout the night goes to fund the chamber’s small business and economic development programs, like their Lakes Proud “Shop Local” campaign.