West Cork Business & Tourism Awards

The Southern Star, together with our partner Carbery, is delighted to announce that the West Cork Business & Tourism Awards are back for 2025!

The West Cork Business & Tourism Awards recognise the amazing work and contribution that businesses make to our region, be it a new business starting off their journey or an established business.

We also champion businesses that have shown support for their local community, have devised clever use of digital or provide outstanding customer service.

The variety of categories allows businesses of all sizes and sectors to get involved - from sole traders to entrepreneurs to SMEs there is a category for everyone.

The awards are a fantastic way to attract publicity to your business, to raise its profile and to acknowledge the great work that business owners and their teams of talented people deliver every day.

With nine categories plus three special awards, we’re calling on businesses across West Cork to enter.

The benefits of entering the awards

There are many benefits to entering the West Cork Business and Tourism Awards.

• You have an opportunity to raise your company’s profile to a local, national and even international audience through our digital platforms.

• The awards are FREE to enter.

• If shortlisted, the awards provide free marketing and PR opportunities for your business.

• Entering can be a great team building exercise to recognise and celebrate the hard work of employees.

• All shortlisted businesses will receive a profile article and photograph in a special West Cork Business & Tourism Awards supplement to be published in The Southern Star and online at southernstar.ie ahead of the gala awards lunch.

• All awards category winners and finalists will receive publicity via The Southern Star newspaper and digital media, a framed certificate and trophy and a special logo that can be used on marketing materials.

• All shortlisted businesses have great networking opportunities at our Pitch Night & Gala Lunch Awards event.

The awards categories

West Cork’s Best Customer Service – Sponsored by ODM Financial Advisors

Ireland is renowned for its ‘Céad Míle Fáilte’ - ‘One Hundred Thousand welcomes’. Businesses pride themselves on reviews and testimonials of a job well done. We are on the search for West Cork’s best customer service. If your business delights its customers time after time and offers the best welcome and best service then we want to hear from you. Use examples of when your business has delivered exceptional customer service. Include details of awards, ratings, media coverage, reviews or testimonials you have received.

Best New Business (in business for 3 years or less) – Sponsored by Collins Brooks & Associates

Starting a business can be exciting and challenging. This award acknowledges new businesses and entrepreneurs that have shown potential to create employment and maximise opportunities in their sector. We want to hear from business owners who have established a new business of any size, in the last three years.

Best Small Business (less than 20 employees) – Sponsored by Local Enterprise Office Cork North and West 

This category is open to any business with less than 20 employees, including solo-preneurs. This business can operate from a home office or trade from a business premises. The business set up can be a sole trader, partnership or limited company and can operate in any sector. We’re looking for examples of how the business has developed, evolved and gone from strength to strength in recent years.

Best Use of Sustainability in a Business – Sponsored by Lilly Ireland

This award recognises businesses in West Cork that are making a real effort to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly. This could include reducing waste, saving energy, using local or eco-friendly products, cutting down on plastic, or supporting the local community in a meaningful way. We’re looking for specific examples of an initiative you’ve that you have put in place taken to run your business in a more environmentally responsible and sustainable way and any resulting benefits. Tell us what changes you made, why you made them, and how they’ve made a difference.

West Cork Young Businessperson of the Year (aged 35 or under) – Sponsored by Access Credit Union

Young entrepreneurs are a key part of Ireland’s future. This category supports and champions West Cork’s young, dynamic and creative business men and women. If you are a business owner or business operator/manager under the age of 35 and your business has been in operation for a minimum of one year this is your opportunity to showcase your business skills.

Best Family-Run Business – Sponsored by Cork County Council

We’re looking for West Cork’s best family-run businesses, in particular those that have been passed down and operated by different generations of the family over the years and/or those that are run today by different generations. All family businesses, small, medium or large, have a story and history behind them and we’d love to hear about yours and why you are successful.

Best use of Digital – Sponsored by Masterkabin

This category celebrates businesses, organisations, or individuals in West Cork who are using digital platforms and tools in smart, creative, or impactful ways. Whether it's through your use of social media, websites, online shops, digital marketing, podcasts, mobile apps or innovative use of technology to connect with customers and visitors - this award recognises digital excellence that drives results. We're looking for entries that show how your use of digital has helped grow your business, improve the visitor experience, reach new audiences, or adapt to change. Tell us what you did, why you did it, and what difference it made.

Best Tourism Experience – Sponsored by Cork Airport

West Cork is renowned for the experience we offer to tourists and locals alike. With its stunning scenery, skilled craftspeople and talented food producers, visitors are spoilt for choice. Tourism experiences showcase what West Cork has to offer and we are looking for the ‘best in the West!’ If you operate a tourism business that offers a superb tourism experience in West Cork, this category is for you.

Best West Cork Festival – Sponsored by O’Sullivan Marine

We’d love to hear from the many unique and vibrant festivals that help make West Cork such a special place all year round. Whether your festival is big or small, long-running or newly started, this category is for those who bring people together to celebrate music, food, arts, culture, history, community or anything else that makes West Cork shine.

Tell us why your festival deserves to be crowned 'Best West Cork Festival 2025' 

Special awards

West Cork Wild Atlantic Way Tourism Business of the Year

The special Fáilte Ireland Award for the ‘West Cork Wild Atlantic Way Tourism Business of the Year’, will be awarded by the judges to a tourism business they feel specifically brings the Wild Atlantic Way regional experience brand to life. The winning tourism business will offer an authentic experience and continually innovate their tourism offering in a sustainable way to attract more visitors to West Cork throughout the year.

West Cork Business Ambassador

The award for West Cork Business Ambassador is awarded to an individual whom the judges feel has made a significant and extraordinary contribution to business life in West Cork.

Previous winners include:

• Colette Twomey, Clonakilty Food Co.

• John Field, Fields SuperValu, Skibbereen

• Brigitte Wagner Halswick, Rowa Pharmaceuticals, Bantry

• Eugene Scally, Scally’s Supervalu & Clonakilty Park Hotel

• Seán O’Driscoll, ex CEO and Chairman of Glen Dimplex

Overall West Cork Business of the Year 2025

The judges will choose an overall winning business from the eight category winners, that has demonstrated excellence, innovation, and a commitment to the local community. The recipient of the Best Overall West Cork Business of the Year award will be announced and honoured during the prestigious ceremony.

Previous winners include:

• Rowa Pharmaceuticals, Bantry

• Keohane Seafoods, Bantry

• Global Shares, Clonakilty

• Fernhill House Hotel, Clonakilty

• Carbery Plastics, Clonakilty

The judging panel

Message from Carbery

The team at Carbery are really proud to be on board as headline sponsor for the Southern Star West Cork Business and Tourism Awards for the second year.

On behalf of Carbery I want to express our congratulations to the team at the Southern Star for running a great initiative, and a special thanks to all of the organisations who submitted entries last year.

The calibre of business and entrepreneurship in West Cork was inspiring to see. We look forward to meeting more local

businesses this year, and to playing a part in supporting the local business ecosystem which is so essential to the fabric of West Cork and rural Ireland.

Jason Hawkins, Chief Executive, Carbery

CHECK OUT THE WINNERS FROM OUR 2024 AWARDS DOWN BELOW