Barefruit Marketing were shortlisted as a finalist to win an award in the Media, Marketing and Advertising Business of the Year category at the Optus My Business Awards 2016, hosted by My Business, Australia’s longest-standing business awards program tailored to the small business community.
Barefruit Directors, and husband and wife Evan and Claire Harding travelled to Sydney on Friday where winners of the Optus My Business Awards were announced at a five-star gala awards dinner at Sydney’s Four Points by Sheraton in Darling Harbour. Shortlisted to the final 10, Barefruit were the only nomination for their category from the Northern Rivers.
Also nominated for an award was Ballina’s Horizon Motorhomes, an award-winning motorhome manufacturer, who are one of Barefruit’s clients. Horizon Motorhomes won best NSW Manufacturer at the Caravan and Camping Industry Association awards in October, and some of their success can be attributed to work produced by Barefruit Marketing which includes the development of a national marketing strategy comprising design, website management, social media management, advertising, events, PR and online marketing.
Claire Harding said it was a joy to be nominated for the awards alongside one of their clients.
“The My Optus Business Awards are such a well-known and respected awards program, and it is such a great honour to be recognised together with our client, Horizon Motorhomes, for all our hard work.
“We are thrilled that our work is ‘bearing fruit’, and has led to success for our clients, notably Horizon Motorhomes who were awarded the CCIA’S Best Manufacturer award for the second consecutive year”.
“We are so proud to be putting Ballina on the map both with ours and Horizon’s nomination and really proud to be living and operating in the Northern Rivers and a part of the local community.”
“Barefruit was established with one thing in mind – we want to do what we love, for people and brands that interest and inspire us. We want to be part of their business and help them grow,” Claire says.
“We didn’t win this time, but being a runner up is such an achievement for both us and our client Horizon Motorhomes – big thanks to our respective teams for getting us to the shortlist of these national awards.”
Being shortlisted in the national awards tops off a particularly successful 18 months for Barefruit, who were Winners of the Lennox Head Chamber of Commerce Awards 2016 ‘Business of the Year’ and 'Best Professional Service', Winners of 'Best Professional Service' at the Ballina Chamber of Commerce Awards 2016 and winners of three awards in 2015, the ‘Best Home-Based’ and ‘Online Marketing’ Award at the Ballina Chamber of Commerce Awards, ‘Excellence in Small Business at the Northern Rivers Business Awards’ and were also ‘State Finalists’ in the NSW Business Awards.