41st Annual Business Excellence Awards
A Gallery of Greatness
Join us as we celebrate the remarkable businesses and leaders shaping our community at the 41st Annual Business Excellence Awards. This year's Gallery of Greatness theme honours the extraordinary stories, innovations, and achievements that define business excellence in our region.
Award Categories
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- Business Person of the Year
- Business of the Year
- BIPOC Business of the Year
- Micro Business of the Year
- Excellence in Customer Service
- Excellence in Entertainment and Attractions
- Excellence in Environmental Impact
- Excellence in Food and Beverage
- Excellence in Not For Profit and Community Service
- Excellence in Promotion and Marketing
- Excellence in Technological Innovation
This year we are proud to welcome a special guest speaker. Learn more below.
Presented in partnership with Canadian Tire.
Guest Speaker
Taylor McPherson
Taylor McPherson is a proud Mi’Kmaw woman and member of the Miawpukek First Nation in Conne River, Newfoundland, whose journey exemplifies determination, leadership, and resilience.
As a wrestler, Taylor spent six years competing for the University of Alberta, where she won a USports national championship individually and played a pivotal role in securing a team championship banner for the university. Taylor also proudly represented Team Canada on the world stage, competing at two U23 World Wrestling Championships in Serbia and Spain. Taylor has since transitioned into coaching, serving as the head coach for Team Alberta Women’s Wrestling at the 2025 Canada Summer Games as well as an assistant coach for the University of Alberta Pandas and the Edmonton Wrestling Club.
Taylor holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Kinesiology from the University of Alberta. Her master’s thesis broke ground by exploring the experiences of women wrestlers with their menstrual cycles, a topic often overlooked in sports science but critical for athlete support and development.
Beyond wrestling, Taylor is widely recognized as a co-winner of Season 10 of The Amazing Race Canada. Alongside her best friend Katie, she raced to victory while promoting an empowering message: strong is beautiful, and girls can achieve anything they set their minds to.