The 2018 Young Entrepreneur Awards will begin in August, marking a decade for the prestigious business awards.

Officially launched in 2008 in Queensland with a mission to find and recognise young business talent in Australia, the Young Entrepreneur Awards has since gained a foothold within the industry. One of the country’s best tech entrepreneurs and “king of the ASX” Bevan Slattery took out the top gong at the very first Brisbane Young Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2009. Slattery said receiving the acclaimed Brisbane Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award was a testament to the many years of hard-work, dedication and drive he had injected into his company at the time.

During its lifespan, Young Entrepreneur Awards has unearthed some of the country’s most successful young business professionals, with its list of winners including Fonebox founder Jordan Grives, Amazonia CEO Dwayne Martens, Anthony Yap and Hahn Lu, Good Price Pharmacy Group, Grace Loves Lace founder Megan Ziems and Noja Power co-founder Quynh Anh Le. Tammy Hembrow, social media megastar, took out the first ever Influencer award after launching her business on Instagram. The newly added Influencer category, reflecting the emerging entrepreneurs reinventing retail on social media and transforming old industries.

Founder of the Young Entrepreneur Awards Camilla Jansen says the Awards ongoing success year-on-year is its ability to find and reveal the industry’s top players and create an environment where entrepreneurship can thrive. “We have been able to give our entrepreneurs a leg up with publicity, recognition and a series of master classes. The initiative provides a little black book of the most important contacts in the city. For those who win the coveted titles, they will become part of an influential cohort of peers who will have opportunities and access to some of biggest stakeholders in each city.”

To be part of this year’s awards, all nominees must have founded their own business with, the company’s head office based in Australia. Finalists will be announced ahead of the 2018 Business News Australia Young Entrepreneur Award ceremonies, commencing in August. Concluding this year’s gala events will be the National Young Entrepreneur Awards, held late October this year.

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