The Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads (SBDC), will hold its Small Business of the Year Awards luncheon on Thursday, May 23 at noon at the Virginia Beach Convention Center (1000 19^th St.). The luncheon coincides with the U.S. Small Business Administration’s “National Small Business Week” which recognizes the contributions of small businesses to the economic well-being of the United States. More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business and also create 60-80% of new jobs in the country.

The Chamber and the SBDC convened a panel of judges to select six businesses, one from each Southside city and one from the Peninsula, to honor. The winning businesses were chosen based on financial performance and business history, staff training and motivation, community involvement, business plan, growth, and customer service and satisfaction. At the luncheon, one of the six city small business winners below will be announced as the Hampton Roads Small Business of the Year.  The overall winner will receive a gift package from the Chamber valued at $10,000.

-       Personal Touch Services Inc. (Chesapeake)

-       Strickland & Jones, P.C. (Norfolk)

-       Triquetra Technologies, Inc. (Peninsula)

-       Hampton Roads Community Health Center (Portsmouth)

-       Reed Integration, Inc (Suffolk)

-       360IT PARTNERS (Virginia Beach)

Members of the Chamber's staff visited winning businesses to surprise them with the news.  View photos.

The “Top 10 to Watch” has also been selected. These businesses are some of the fastest-growing small businesses in the area:

-       Dancing Tomato

-       GM Engineering Services, LLC

-       GreenLife Adventure Sports

-       Hampton Roads Veterinary Hospice

-       Kelli’s Dance Explosion

-       O’Connor Brewing Company

-       RoboCent, Inc.

-       ShepelleWatkinsWhite Consulting & Law, PLLC

-       Vinylmint

-       Vox Optima

In addition, the Impressions in Print Leadership Award will be presented to Zack Miller, Founder of Hatch, for his leadership, impact on workplace culture, community service and involvement, professional achievement, and perseverance.

The Young Entrepreneur Award (YEA!), will be awarded to Brad Scott, owner of Cetan Corp. for his outstanding initiative as a young entrepreneur in the Hampton Roads region. The award recognizes young entrepreneurs who have taken the risk of starting and running their own business in Hampton Roads.

Keynote speaker will be Dr. Stephen Scoper, Vice President of Virginia Eye Consultants, the Chamber’s 2011 Small Business of the Year. Dr. Scoper has an international reputation in his field as a board-certified, fellowship-trained specialist in all areas of refractive surgery, from cataract surgery to LASIK.  Dr. Scoper’s expertise adds considerably to Virginia Eye Consultants comprehensive approach to vision care. He is the specialist to whom other physicians refer their difficult refractive surgery cases. Dr. Scoper is also an associate professor of ophthalmology at Eastern Virginia Medical School and combines his interest in treating patients with his love for teaching and research, a distinction that sets Virginia Eye Consultants apart from other vision practices.

Tickets to the Small Business of the Year Awards luncheon are $35 (member) and $50 (prospective member).  To register, visit http://events.HamptonRoadsChamber.com. For more information, contact Shirley Core at score@hrccva.com or 757-664-2535. 

Thanks to sponsors: Southern Bank (Presenting); Inside Business (Media); Impressions in Print (Leadership Award); Virginia Beach Convention Center (Gold).