Chamber seeks Small Business of the Year

Any chamber-member business with 50 or fewer employees is eligible for the W. Curtis Strube award, named after the late director of Drury University's Breech School of Business and founder of the chamber's Small Business Council.

A panel of five judges will score each nominee in five categories: company history, business or management philosophy, response to challenges, innovative products or services offered and contributions to the community.

Jen Johnson, program coordinator for economic development at the chamber, said she expects to receive about 20 nominations this year. Though only one will receive the ultimate honor, all nominees will be recognized, she said, and videos about the top five will be shown at the ceremony.

“The reason why we make such a big deal of the top five finalists and not just the recipient is that we try to emphasize that all of them have been very successful,” Johnson said. “It's the achievement of small businesses in the area that we're trying to recognize.”

The chamber will present the award at a luncheon May 3 at the Oasis Inn and Convention Center.

Richardson's Candy House was the 2005 honoree, and other past winners include Butler, Rosenbury & Partners, Millwood Golf & Racquet Club, Carnahan-White and Springfield Business Journal.

To nominate, submit a form at the chamber's Web site, www.springfieldchamber.com.