The Scale Up North (SUN) Awards took place the week of May 4 – 8 and celebrated dynamic small businesses in Northern Michigan. Originally, the SUN awards were to take place in mid-March at the City Opera House and be an evening of networking, celebrating innovation and economic growth. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Traverse Connect was faced with the difficult decision to cancel the event. It seemed a loss not to be able to honor the hard work and dedication of these local small businesses, so Traverse Connect exercised creative problem solving to share the experience with the entire region.
The Scale Up North Awards acknowledge the vibrant and varied companies doing business “up north”. Following the example of many of the region’s businesses, Traverse Connect pivoted its practices to fit the current global situation; The decision was made to transform the Scale Up North Awards to an online platform which could be viewed on Facebook or YouTube.
Of the twenty-five businesses in the running, Traverse Connect recognized one business in each of the following categories: The Emerging Business Award and The Hagerty Scaling Business Award. The Emerging Business Award focuses on companies that have been in business for less than five years, with any amount of revenue, and at least three full-time employees. The Hagerty Scaling Business Award is focused on supporting existing scaling businesses with demonstrated growth.
In the category of The Emerging Business Award, the winner was Interactive Aerial, a robotics company dedicated to internal inspections of confined space environments. Interactive Aerial provides the manufacturing and servicing of its products and offers cost effective solutions. In the category of The Hagerty Scaling Business Award, the winner was TentCraft, a large-scale tent and event signage design and manufacturing company. TentCraft offers custom marketing products to fit each customer’s event needs. These businesses have demonstrated great innovation, drive, and have contributed to the region’s economic growth.
Congratulations to the 2020 winners of The Scale Up North Awards! We look forward to seeing all that you will accomplish in the years to come!
Thank you to our Scale Up North Awards Sponsors:
Presenting Sponsors
Media Sponsors
In-Kind Sponsors
