Awards Detail

  • The BASA Awards is an online competition that aims to spotlight the immense contribution of small businesses to communities and create awareness of the exciting opportunities they bring.
  • The BASA Awards are exclusively for small businesses in Canada. There are six tracks and over 150 categories to choose from.
  • The BASA Awards is an esteemed independent award, not influenced by large companies and free from nepotism.
  • The Judges are only interested in one thing: YOUR WORK.
  • Companies that receive the highest number of public votes are listed on the BASA Awards TopList Companies as rapidly growing companies to watch.
  • The application and final entry deadline is on August 30, 2024. After that, judging and public voting will follow, and the winner will be announced by the end of November 2024.

Your nomination helps us celebrate small business excellence

The growing volume of small businesses in Canada has made the country entrepreneurial. Since small businesses are the lifeblood of Canada’s economy, the BASA Awards value and respect their individual contribution by celebrating their entrepreneurs, visionaries, innovators and disruptors. We exist to give excellent small businesses the recognition they deserve.

With more than 150 categories to choose from, the BASA Awards are one of the most significant awards for small businesses. All companies that submit a nomination have an equal chance of winning.

Strictly for small businesses only, it’s an award where companies can fairly compete with other small businesses in their field of expertise.

Entry Fees

  • Entry fees for all categories in the 2024 BASA Awards are as follows:

  • Early Bird Deadline: $200 for the first entry, $60 for additional entries, until 20 May, 2024.

  • Early Deadline: $215 for the first entry, $90 for additional entries, until 20 August, 2024.

  • Regular Deadline: $225 for the first entry, $90 for additional entries, until 30 August, 2024

  • You can edit and change all applications until 30 August, 2024. No further changes will be allowed after the deadline.
  • Questions? Get in touch.

    Anna Stella

    We have a team on standby to help you with any questions regarding your entries.

    Reach out to our Awards team

    About the Best of canada Small Business Awards

    How to join

    The registration and submission for the award is a simple process.
    Learn more

    6 tracks and 150+ Categories

    A wide variety of categories to select for your small business. Find out more

    Key dates

    Follow our calendar to remain up-to-date when planning your submission. See more

    Benefits of submitting your entry

    Your small business has a chance to be celebrated and acknowledged. Discover more

    Winners get…

    We have some incredible gifts for our winner. Click here for more.

    Entry tips

    How to win? Learn the tips for successfully submitting your entry. See more

    Evaluation process

    BASA Awards has a fair and rigorous evaluation process that gives every entry a chance to win.Learn more

    Entry kit

    entry kit to assist you in the application process.Click here for a copy.

    FAQs

    What are the BASA Awards?

    The BASA Awards are one of the largest and only independent business awards programs in Canada. At these awards, no participant will experience nepotism, be required to join any club, or pay anything apart from the entry fees to participate. Every business participating will be judged based on their work and the good they do to push the industry forward. To learn more about BASA Awards. click here

    What are the categories?

    The Awards have 6 groups and over 150+ categories ranging from products, services, technology, and innovations for you to choose from. How many categories are there in the BASA Awards? The BASA Awards have 150+ categories for you to choose from. There is only one winner per category. All entries scoring 75% from judges will be named Finalists and submitted to public voting to increase their chances of becoming category winners.

    How many Winners and Finalists will the BASA Awards have?

    The participant with the highest scores from both the public votes and judges will be declared the category Winner and receive the Winner's certificate by mail as well as the digital seals and Winners digital kit. Businesses in the TopList will be awarded a digital certificate and the seals. All category Winners and Finalists can commemorate their win by buying our custom-made Atlanta trophy.

    Can BASA Awards Winners and Finalists purchase additional awards?

    Yes. BASA Winners and Finalists will have the opportunity to purchase an additional Trophy statuette. The Trophy Atlanta is 100% handmade exclusively for the BASA Awards in Italy by the internationally acclaimed artist Ithaca.

    What are the benefits of sending an application?

    There are numerous benefits to preparing, submitting entries, and winning the BASA Awards. Simply sending an application will help you craft a brief and compelling success story of your company and the resilient hero you represent, which you can then use elsewhere. Whilst we can't mention all the Award benefits here, we have compiled 15 reasons why you need to grab this opportunity and send in your application today.

    What media coverage can BASA Awards Winners expect to receive?

    All BASA Awards winners will receive national exposure and be featured on the awards website, blog, and social media pages. The BASA Awards marketing team will ensure to generate local, regional, and national exposure for all our winners.

    Who can send a nomination?

    Only small businesses operating in Canada can be nominated.

    Is it exclusively for small companies?

    The BASA Award accepts entries exclusively from small businesses or startups operating in Canada. An entrepreneur or person looking to send an application can only be accepted if their entry represents a specific established Canada-based company.

    Are non-profit companies eligible to apply?

    Yes. Please note that we don’t accept nominations from any large or medium-sized non-profits.

    Can non-profit organizations send applications?

    Yes, any organization can participate as long as they are not classified as medium or large companies.

    When is the application deadline?

    All nominations close on 30 August, 2024.

    Are there any entry charges?

    Yes. Since the BASA Awards are independent, we are funded by your nomination fees. See the Entry Fees section for more information.

    Are submissions kept confidential?

    Yes. The BASA Awards organizers ensure that only authorized judges will review entries and that no information about nominees is released to anyone else without prior approval and consent. We also strongly encourage all our applicants not to include company secrets or sensitive information they might not be comfortable sharing with the public, as all companies with a judging score of 75% and above will automatically be submitted to public voting. Furthermore, as an extra security measure, we provide an opportunity for BASA Awards category Winners and companies on the TopList to remove confidential information from their applications before publishing them on the award website.

    Why are the application requirements for most categories so loosely outlined?

    The application requirements are loosely outlined because we understand that every organization is unique in its culture, accomplishments, and reasons for seeking recognition. The requirements are structured to allow each organization to identify and highlight its achievements. We did not want to narrow the award's focus by strictly defining the application requirements.

    Who judges the BASA Awards?

    The BASA Awards are judged by a panel of independent third-party industry leaders. The completed Panel of Judges lineup will be announced soon.

    Who are the BASA Award judges?

    The BASA judging panel comprises third-party industry experts from corporations interested in giving back and promoting small business growth.