Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards

2014 July Winners

Mayor's Innovation GC Award: Skyline Landscape Services Skyline Landscape Services is a recognised leader in the horticultural, landscape and grounds maintenance industry. For over 22 years, Skyline has provided quality, cost-effective services to residential communities, commercial properties and government assets. Established in 1991 by Colin and Chris Richardson, their family-friendly company provides employment opportunities to over 300 people and returns millions of dollars to the Gold Coast economy every year. Their enthusiasm and passion to provide the highest quality service and value for money is built in to everything they do.
Environment and Sustainability Award: MCV Enviroworks MCV Enviroworks began in 2004 with a single operator using a bobcat and truck and has grown into a successful, progressive and innovative Queensland-based company with 9 employees and a modern fleet of landscaping and erosion control installation equipment. MCV Enviroworks was established with the vision and determination to change the face of the erosion control and landscaping industry through innovation, design, development and the installation of recycled waste materials into productive environmentally friendly products and resources. This process is magnified further by the method of installation which again minimises disturbance to the natural environment as well as labour intensive activities.
Family Business Award: John Henderson Professionals Mermaid Beach John Henderson Professionals Mermaid Beach is a family-owned business that has served Mermaid Beach, Mermaid Waters and Miami Beach for more than 40 years. The company employs 24 people, sells more than $100 million of property a year and manages $650 million worth of property. The business, which was set up in 1973 by John Henderson, is now run by his sons Andrew and Luke Henderson.
Health and Wellbeing Award: GrayClay Grayclay is a provider of nationally accredited academic and practical education in the field of cosmetic medical aesthetics. Their courses are recognised by a number of key organisations in the cosmetic medicine, beauty and government sectors. Starting as a part-time operation in 2005, GrayClay was launched as a full-time business in 2010 when Grayclay hired a room at Central Queensland University in Southport. At first the business had only two staff members including the managing director and a loan of $60,000. In 2014, the Gold Coast campus has 60 students, Brisbane has 40 students and Melbourne is now training 6 students per fortnight in practical training sessions.
Trades, Professions and Services Award: Ecosure Ecosure, an environmental consulting and contracting company, delivers practical, expert advice and solutions to complex environmental issues. Specialising in Ecology, Vegetation, Wildlife, Aquatic Ecology and GIS, their highly qualified scientists and field crew offer extensive on-ground experience across the full spectrum of environmental sciences. Operating from its Gold Coast head office since 1998 and with offices across Australia, Ecosure has grown to be one of the largest providers of ecological services in Australia. Truly a Gold Coast success story, Ecosure claims giants such as Defence, Bechtel and Shell as its clients, but as ever, delivers high quality work to the City of Gold Coast and Gold Coast Airport as two of its foundation clients.
Retail, Wholesale and Distribution Award: The Village Markets The Village Markets is a fashion and lifestyle market event, showcasing up to one hundred stalls per event as well as live local music by emerging artists. Established in 2008 by Marissa Bowden and Sarah Schoeller, The Village Markets were the Gold Coast’s first boutique fashion, art, vintage and creative market. The Village Markets aims to provide a launch pad and retail outlet for talented small creative businesses and musicians, as well as providing an enjoyable, regular cultural event for the Gold Coast and its visitors. Stall categories include emerging fashion designers and artists, clothing and homewares collectors and restorers and small local businesses in the creative sector.
Manufacturing and Constuction Award: McFadyen Pipeline Constructions McFadyen Group (MFG) is the trading name for McFadyen Pipeline Constructions and is a privately owned civil works company located at Yatala. McFadyen Group is a leader in the pipeline construction industry, specialising in pipeline and associated concrete works construction and plant hire. MFG's owner and key staff each having many years’ experience in the civil contracting industry at projects of all scales and at various locations throughout Australia. MFG continually grows to meet ever expanding client needs, proving no project is too complex or too isolated not to be able to provide quality services.
Knowledge Management and IT Award: StrataMax StrataMax is a comprehensive strata software solution designed purposefully for Strata Management offices. There are three main components: StrataMax, StrataCash and StrataPay. The StrataMax solution streamlines the administration and financial tasks which allows strata management companies to manage more lots with fewer resources. Strata businesses who adopt StrataMax have traditionally found they are able to grow their business due to the automated processes which in turn increase their efficiencies. Making strata management less time intensive and more transparent, StrataMax grew out of a need in the industry to streamline processes and has been solely focused on strata for over 21 years now. Its initial launch on the Gold Coast has seen StrataMax expand rapidly throughout Australia.
Tourism, Hospitality and Events Award: Bookeasy Bookeasy is Australia's leading software solution for the tourism industry, with over 165 visitor centres and 38,000 operators now benefiting from Bookeasy's proven success formula. The system offers fully integrated front and back office business solutions and will help tourism centres streamline their entire business operations. Australian Tourism Organisations install Bookeasy to increase revenue, reduce costs, build real-time strategic marketing intelligence and distribute inventory around the globe.
Emerging Business Award: LEAPIN Digital Keys LEAPIN Digital Keys develops smartphone applications which can replace keys to unlock doors and other locks. The technology can be used in a range of settings including hotels, telecommunication companies and in the home. LEAPIN is currently exporting to Germany and Japan, and is selling to small hotels and resorts and Australia. LEAPIN has three international patent applications, several trademarks, and copyright documents on various software packages it has built since 2008. The company was a finalist in the 2013 The Australian/Shell Innovation Awards and was a recipient of a Commercialisation Australia grant in 2012.