A virtual experience, live streaming on Friday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m.

(Black PR Wire) Miami, FL - The Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council (FSMSDC) will honor minority-owned businesses, as well as the corporations, government agencies and others that promote their success, at the Business Impact Awards. The awards will be live streamed on Friday, September 18, 6:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m., online.

The Business Impact Awards are the FSMSDC’s reimagined annual awards, which had been presented during a dinner and dancing gala in the past. This year, the FSMSDC pivoted to create a live online event, during which it will announce and honor the award winners with the theme “A Celebration of Excellence in Supplier Diversity.” The Impact Awards will recognize the achievements of Florida’s top minority-owned businesses, as well as major corporations, government agencies, health care and educational institutions, and dynamic industry leaders that are committed to supplier diversity.

“We feel that, during COVID-19, it is more important than ever to celebrate minority businesses, their successes and their resilience in the face of adversity,” said Beatrice Louissaint, President and CEO of the FSMSDC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing access and growth for minority-owned business in Florida. “And, we also want to honor the corporations, individuals and others doing great work in supplier diversity, even as they, too, face new challenges.”

Tickets for the online Business Impact Awards, live streaming online Friday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m., are available at floridastateawardsgala.com. Each ticket buyer will receive a unique link to attend the awards.

The FSMSDC will present 14 prestigious awards to organizations and individuals, including the Doing Well While Doing Good® Humanitarian Awards, which honor a minority-owned business and a large corporation or institution that have made significant contributions to the community. Other awards will include minority-owned Supplier of the Year in four different revenue classes; Corporation of the Year, which honors a Florida company and a national company for their supplier diversity efforts; the Crystal Award honoring a leader or company that publicly demonstrates a commitment to minority business development; and the special President’s Award. Minority-owned businesses will also be honored with the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Client of the Year awards. Individual business leaders will be honored with the Advocate of the Year Award for fostering the growth of minority businesses and the Buyer Award for actively soliciting and making substantial purchases from minority-owned suppliers.

Business Impact Award Listing and Nominees

Doing Well While Doing Good® – Corporate

• University of Miami
• University of South Florida

Doing Well While Doing Good® – Minority Business Enterprise   

• Vistra Communications
• TriOrb Solutions

Advocate of the Year    

• Angela Williams of AT&T
• Carmen Deale of Office Depot
• Anthea Pennant of Broward College
• Dicky Sykes of the School District of Palm Beach County
• Sandy Michael McDonald of Broward County’s Office of Economic and Small Business Development
• Tonja Graham of Duke Energy

Supplier of the Year Class I (annual sales $1 million or less)

• Phone and Pad Warehouse
• TriOrb Solutions

Supplier of the Year Class II (annual sales $1 million–$10 million)

• Architectural Design Collaborative
• Carter-Health Disposables
• PowerWright Technologies
• Sol Davis Printing
• NuJak Development

Supplier of the Year Class III (annual sales $10 million–$50 million)

• Chinese Food Solutions
• MAS Global Consulting
• CHOMPS
• HNM Enterprise Printing

Supplier of the Year Class IV (annual sales over $50 million)

• Coca-Cola Beverages Florida
• Badia Spices
• Magno International

Buyer of the Year

• Beth Mulder of the Walt Disney Company
• Oswaldo “Ozzy” Soto of Universal Parks & Resorts

Local Corporation of the Year    

• Broward College
• Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise
• Orlando Health

National Corporation of the Year

• Johnson Controls
• Duke Energy
• Comcast NBCUniversal
• Novartis Corporation
• The Walt Disney Company

Other Awards to be Presented:

• President’s Award
• Crystal Award
• Miami MBDA Client of the Year Award
• Orlando MBDA Client of the Year Award

The winners will be announced during our live stream on Friday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are available at floridastateawardsgala.com. For media passes, please contact Beatrice Louissaint, FSMSDC President and CEO, at Beatrice@fsmsdc.org or (305) 762-6151.

About the Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council (FSMSDC)

FSMSDC is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to advancing access and growth for minority businesses in Florida. The organization’s goal is to increase purchasing from minority businesses by government entities and corporations, while increasing Minority Business Enterprises’ operating capacity through hands-on business assistance, training, and access to technology and capital resources. FSMSDC was founded in 1975 and is one of 23 regional councils affiliated with the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC). The Council acts as a liaison between corporate America and Minority Business Enterprises in the state of Florida.

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Media Note: Press passes and video available.