Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce Announces Winners of the 2017 Small Business of the Year Awards

The Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce announced today the winners of its 2017 Small Business of the Year Awards, which recognize small businesses for their outstanding workplace culture, employee relations and community contributions. The winner for the small category (1-10 employees) is Vern’s Toffee House; winner for the medium category (11-50 employees) is Vaught, Frye, Larson Architects, Inc.; winner for the large category (51-200 employees) is Forney Industries, Inc.; and winner for the New Kid on the Block category (business in operation for less than three years) is Senior Life Solutions.

Winners were honored at the Celebrating Small Business Awards & Breakfast event on May 25, 2017 at Drake Center in Fort Collins. The event included a keynote presentation from Mark Driscoll, Colorado Market President for First National Bank.

“These outstanding businesses have exemplified the strong company culture and community involvement that keeps our local economy in motion,” said David May, President of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce. “We are proud to honor these top businesses and say thank you for their contributions to northern Colorado.”

The New Kid on the Block winner, Senior Life Solutions, is an in-home service provider that enhances the quality of life of senior citizens and those who care for them in northern Colorado. Through professional care management and counseling services, Senior Life Solutions provides physical, emotional, social and spiritual support. They operate on the values of professionalism, respect, integrity, dignity and excellence (PRIDE) to create a culture that treasures older individuals. In addition, Senior Life Solutions value community service so much that employees are given paid time off for their volunteer time.

Vern’s Toffee House, the small category winner, is a family-owned business that has the market cornered on scrumptious, hand-stirred butter almond toffee for 40 years. The company is proud to uphold traditional, small-business values such as hard work, pride in a locally produced product, and outstanding customer service. Vern’s Toffee House supports the community through its involvement with several local causes, including Pathways, Ramstrength, Elderhaus, Crossroads Safehouse and many more.

Vaught Frye Larson Architects, Inc., a full-capacity architectural firm, received top honors in the medium category. For more than 30 years, Vaught Frye Larson Architects, Inc., has offered an array of architectural and interior design services and has completed countless projects in the Fort Collins area. This company is involved in the community through its participation in United Way Business Cares and Climatewise, as well as through its support of charities, such as Boys and Girls Club of Larimer and Weld County, Crossroads Safehouse, Animal House and more.

Large category winner, Forney Industries, Inc., dates all the way back to 1932 and is a national leader in supplying the retail and industrial markets with metal working and welding products. This company lives by the motto, “We succeed when our customers succeed,” and therefore places great emphasis on innovation, product quality and expert marketing strategy. In addition, Forney Industries, Inc. has integrated itself into the community in numerous ways: participating in Adopt-A-Street events, hosting a Bike to Work Day station, coordinating blood drives with the Garth Englund Blood Center and many more.

Finalists for all four categories are as follows: Small: Onsight Auto Glass, Vern’s Toffee House; Medium: FLEXX Productions, Vaught Frye Larson Architects, Inc., Workspace Innovations, Colorado In Motion; Large: Forney Industries, Neuworks Mechanical, Inc., The Women’s Clinic of Northern Colorado; New Kid on the Block: Elevate Chiropractic, Senior Life Solutions, Valimenta Labs.

The Small Business of the Year Awards are underwritten by First National Bank, Kaiser Permanente, Adams Bank & Trust, Blue Federal Credit Union, Comcast, Hunt, Spillman & Associates, P.C., Mantooth Marketing Company, Total Facility Care, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Northern Colorado Catering and Sign-A-Rama

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