Rosendin

Later this month, the Scottsdale business community will gather at the Scottsdale Area Chamber of Commerce’s 34th-annual Sterling Awards to recognize excelling businesses of all sizes in the city.

The event – Nov. 15, at the Embassy Suites Resort – includes awards for the top micro, small and big businesses in the Scottsdale area. There is also an award for the top non-profit organization.

“The Sterling Awards recognize the great accomplishments of businesses in Scottsdale,” said Scottsdale Chamber President and CEO Mark Stanton. “The honorees represent innovation, success and the highest standards of business practice excellence.”

Twelve businesses and organizations will be up for awards at the event.

Micro business
The nominees in the micro business category, which recognizes companies with one to five employees, include:

10 to 1 Public Relations. A two-time nominee for the award, 10 to 1 Public Relations is a Scottsdale-based PR and communication firm, working with a range of clients from Arizona and around the country, including Plexus Worldwide, Rosendin, Vantage Mobility International, Title Alliance, Platinum Living Realty and Clinica Sierra Vista.

In June, 10 to 1 moved into a new office near Scottsdale Quarter to accommodate the company’s growing client roster.

Classic Cooking. This culinary school, located in northern Scottsdale, offers cooking and pastry courses, classes for children and teens, recreational cooking classes and wine dinners.

Owners Pascal and Donna Dionot opened the business in 2007, with the goal of bringing a quality culinary education program to the Valley.

Chef Pascal Dionot is a native of Champagne, France, who trained in France, Germany and Spain, before becoming executive chef at the Hay Adams Hotel in Washington, D.C. in 1979. He taught at L’Academie de Cuisine in Maryland for 18 years.

Green Bin. This Tempe business rents out recyclable bins to commercial and residential customers throughout the Valley as an alternative to cardboard moving boxes.

The bins are reused more than 400 times before they are recycled at the end of their life, according to the company. Each bin is cleaned with non-toxic, biodegradable cleaner after each use.

Green Bin also gives back to the Valley communities it serves by donating bins for use to area nonprofit organizations.

Small business

The small business category recognizes organizations with 6 to 99 employees. The nominees are:

Casago. This Scottsdale vacation rental and property management company has properties in Arizona, California and Mexico.

The company began as a vacation rental provider in Rocky Point, Mexico, 20 years ago and has since expanded to offer short term vacation rentals, long-term rentals, corporate housing and other related services.

The company is up for a 2019 Better Business Bureau Torch Award for Ethics and was also honored by Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate.

TraVek. This full-service home remodeling business started in Scottsdale in 2001.

Prior to opening TraVek with his wife and children, owner Randy Raisanen, started a house painting company in Minnesota before moving to Arizona in 1984, to partner in a home improvement business.

Today, TraVek’s services include bathroom and kitchen remodeling, home additions and handyman services.

In 2018, TraVek’s Von and Todd Raisanen received the Big50 designation for kitchen remodeling from Remodeling magazine, which recognizes top professionals throughout the country.

Windom Security Strategies Today. This Scottsdale company provides training, security assessments, on-site security and other services to a variety of customers, including schools, churches, neighborhood associations and commercial customers.

The company is the result of a merger of Alexis Security Group and Security Strategies Today.

Windom’s staff is made up of 89 percent veterans or former law enforcement and the company also gives back to veteran-related charities, including Operation Hero Project, PTSD Foundation of America and Marine Raider Foundation.

Big business

The big business category recognizes organizations with 100 or more employees. This year, the nominees are:

Hotel Valley Ho. This downtown Scottsdale mainstay opened in 1956, and played host to celebrities like Bing Crosby and Zsa Zsa Gabor.

Designed by architect Edward Varney, the hotel is an example of mid-century, modern architecture. The hotel was restored in the early 2000s, to reflect those stylistic roots.

The hotel, which includes two pools, a spa, and the ZuZu restaurant, now hosts a number of activities throughout the year, including yoga, historic tours and holiday meals.

Plexus. From its headquarters in the Scottsdale Airpark, Plexus Worldwide runs one of the world’s largest direct-selling companies with 400 employees on-site in Scottsdale.

Through a network of contractors, the company sells a variety of dieting, gut health and skincare supplements.

Plexus, a finalist at last year’s Sterling Awards, has a history of giving back to the community.

Earlier this year, Plexus employees contributed 418 volunteer hours to the St. Mary’s Food Bank in Phoenix. The company also sponsored a new police dog for the Salt River Police Department.

Wells Fargo. This American multinational financial services company, headquartered in San Francisco, has central offices throughout the United States.

It is the world’s fourth-largest bank by market capitalization and the fourth largest bank in the US by total assets.

Nonprofit

The nonprofit category recognizes organizations that contribute to the social, cultural or educational wellbeing of the community. The nominees are:

The Phoenix Herpetological Sanctuary. Located in Scottsdale, the sanctuary is the only facility of its kind in the state and maintains Arizona’s largest anti-venom bank.

The organization cares for approximately 1,000 reptiles, including endangered species, and provides educational services to first responders, animal control and other individuals who may come into contact with reptiles.

The sanctuary also advocates for environmental conservation and the protection of the many varieties of wildlife it houses.

Harvest Compassion Center. Operated by Mitchell Swaback Charities, this Phoenix-based food bank allows underserved Valley residents to procure everything from food items and personal hygiene products to clothing with the help of a personal shopper.

The center currently operates two locations in Phoenix and Maryvale.

Harvest Compassion Center has served over 32,000 families since opening in 2011.

Scottsdale Arts. This non-profit manages the City of Scottsdale’s cultural assets and the Civic Center campus, including the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts and Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.

Additionally, Scottsdale Arts produces a number of performances and educational opportunities each year, including Canal Convergence and Scottsdale ArtsFest