The crowd of nearly 150 is one indication. That everyone mingled, talked and enjoyed good food is another.
The resounding applause for each recipient is yet a third measure of success for this inaugural County and
City government partnership created to honor small businesses.

Jerrianne Jackson, a small business specialist for the City of Charlotte, explains the event and its purpose.

“In celebration of small business month, the City and County joined forces to celebrate the outstanding
accomplishments of the small business community,” Jackson said. “The Crowns of Enterprise Awards
recognized and honored Small Business Enterprise (SBE), Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and Women
Business Enterprise (WBE) firms that have demonstrated exemplary leadership and sound business
strategies.”

Here is a list of the 2012 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Crowns of Enterprise Award Recipients:

• MBE of the Year Award – Hissho Sushi
• WBE of the Year Award – Elm Engineering
• SBE of the Year Award – Hinde Engineering
• Rising Business of the Year Award – Anointed Flooring

“This is the first time the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County collaborated to award small businesses in
the community,” Jackson said. “More than 40 businesses were nominated and four were award recipients.”

The May 24, 2012 event at the Palmer Building on East 7th Street in Charlotte drew an enthusiastic and
appreciative crowd. The event offered county and city staff another opportunity to talk with their customers
and to celebrate their business successes.

“We all are guilty of working and working and never sounding the horn on the good things we are doing or
have done,” Teresa McDow said. She heads the County’s Minority, Women and Small Business Enterprise
Program. “The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Crowns of Enterprise Awards is an excellent way to showcase your
company and the services one provides.”

And McDow adds another reason why the networking opportunity and participation in the Crowns of
Enterprise Awards event is a plus for qualifying entrepreneurs.

“Secondly, a large number of small businesses are no longer a small company with two to four employees,”
McDow said. “They have grown substantially; therefore other general contractors and the community as a
whole will learn first-hand of their growth. With growth come job opportunities.”

The team tasked with making the event a success is made up of employees from Mecklenburg County and
the City of Charlotte. Their jobs working with economic development and neighborhood and business
enterprise helped them bring expertise and knowledge to the planning. And they’re on board for next year,
too.

Events such as the Crowns of Enterprise help Mecklenburg County government in its economic development
outreach efforts, McDow said. She offers the following example.

“The Crowns of Enterprise Awards recognized two companies, Elm Engineering and Superior Mechanical
Company,” McDow said. “In the beginning, the two just looked for the opportunity to do business with
Mecklenburg County. Over the years they have built a strong relationship with Mecklenburg County and have
worked with a spirit of excellence in partnerships with other small M/W/SBE companies.”

And the payoff for the effort is commendable, McDow said.

“Superior Mechanical started out in the program and today they are bidding as a single prime contractor with
80 employees,” McDow said.

For a photographic look at the awards event, visit the County's Flickr site.