Tarwater Farm & Home named Top City Small Business of the Year

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - Tarwater Farm & Home took home the top prize at Tuesday’s 41st Annual Small Business Awards ceremony.

The event, which ran from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Townsite Avenue Ballroom, 535 S. Kansas Ave., attracted several hundred people.

Attendees dined on a lunch of beef tips before viewing narrated highlights of each of the 23 businesses nominated for the nine award categories.

Matt Pivarnik, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Topeka Partnership, applauded all of the small businesses in the Topeka area during his remarks.

“Small businesses -- they’re big business in Topeka,” Pivarnik said. “Small businesses are huge businesses in Topeka.”

Pivarnik said 90 percent of all firms in the capital city are small businesses.

Additionally, he said, half of all jobs -- some 41,000 in all -- in Topeka are in small businesses. The annual payroll for employees of small businesses in Topeka is $1.6 billion, he added.

The complete list of winners at Tuesday’s ceremony:

• Young Entrepreneur Award -- Alejandro Mateos, of Naly’s Outdoor Co.

• Micro Enterprise Award -- Blue Jazz Coffee.

• Emerging Innovation Venture Award -- Brew Bank.

• Women-Owned Small Business Award -- Asset Lifecycle

• Minority-Owned Small Business Award -- Harris & Sons Enterprises

• Veteran-Owned Small Business Award -- Anneal Initiative

• Small Business Manufacturer Award -- PlainsCraft Covered Wagons

• Small Business Exporter Award -- Harris Fabrication

• Top City Small Business of the Year -- Tarwater Farm & Home

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