Why Erica Hogan was happy dancing (Updated with full list of award winners)

Entrepreneur Erica Hogan danced enthusiastically onstage at The Machine Shop in front of the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce annual Outstanding Business Achievement Awards audience Saturday evening.

Her unbridled joy came after Hogan’s Homestead was announced as the Chamber’s choice for the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

The dancing came, Erica told SooToday, because “we were very humbled...there are amazing businesses at the awards that surpass us and we look at them as mentors to see how we can grow.”

Erica and husband Spencer Hogan started up Hogan’s Homestead, a small maple syrup production business, three years ago.

“The award has my name on it but it’s a joint effort because I can’t be an entrepreneur without Spencer. We’re a team. He’s the production part of it, I’m the business, marketing and social media part. If you have maple syrup tapping questions, ask Spencer,” Erica said, as the smiling couple held their Chamber award.

“We started it off as a hobby, just to spend time together as a husband and wife.”

Since starting up, Erica said, “five maple syrup taps turned into 26, 26 turned into 500, and now we’re into the thousands in 2020.”

“We started on St. Joseph Island and our goal is to move into Sault Ste. Marie so we can offer a facility for our youth, where they can come out to workshops and field trips, so we can really educate our youth. We’re in the first steps of doing that,” Erica said.

Hogan’s Homestead is now located within the Sault’s Two Brain Workshop, located on White Oak Drive East. 

“That’s where you'll find our head office and a little mini storefront. You can come and grab a little bite to eat at the Feeding Your Soul cafe (within the Two Brain Workshop). We ship all our wholesale orders and online orders out of there, and we welcome the public into our storefront to shop,” Erica said.

“We specialize in flavoured syrups, such as cinnamon bourbon, coffee-infused, vanilla bean, we even do maple-infused barbecue sauces, salad dressings, and we might have some hot sauces coming up.”

“If you ask my brother, he’ll say our syrup is ‘the strongest maple syrup in town,’” Erica said.

That, she explained, is a play on words, using the word ‘strongest’ and the Hogan name, as in Hulk Hogan.

Sales of Hogan’s Homestead maple syrup have been mostly domestic, but Spencer said “we’ve sent a couple of dozen orders to the States, Ireland, England, Central America, the Dominican Republic as well.”

“Our product has reached far more places than we could ever have imagined, but that’s not the stopping point. Hogan’s Homestead plans to be a household brand,” Erica said.

“We can’t wait to see where it goes.”

More information on the business, including how to place orders, can be found at the Hogan’s Homestead Facebook page or website

Meanwhile, Glenn MacDonald, Sault Ste. Marie Golf Club board of directors president, and Jeff Hamilton, the club’s golf pro, were among a group who accepted the Chamber’s Business of the Year Award (10 to 25 employees). 

Both men were clearly pleased to be involved in the operation of a golf course which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2019.

“We’re still going strong,” MacDonald told SooToday.

“We were the first golf course in the Sault and area. We are a Stanley Thompson-designed course (Thompson a Scottish-born Canadian golf course architect who designed many courses).”

“We had a tremendous year last year with a number of events to celebrate our 100th anniversary, and this year we’re going to be hosting the 2020 Ontario Senior Amateur Championship (July 28 to 30). We’re looking forward to that tournament because it’s very prestigious,” MacDonald said.

The 18-hole Sault Ste. Marie Golf Club course, in itself, is owned by its members, with a board in place to manage the facility.

The Golf Club’s course was private for many years but was opened up to the public a decade ago (with both membership rates and daily public green fees available).

“The golf industry went through a bit of a phase. We also work with other golf associates in the city, such as Silver Creek, Root River and Crimson Ridge. We have a city-wide golf tournament which involves all the courses, we share things like golf carts if need be, so we’re very much a community course,” MacDonald said.

“Our biggest drive is to really promote junior golf to our members. We’ve grown our junior membership to about 65 members...but we also have two members who are in their 90s who still play golf.”

“It’s a sport all ages can enjoy,” said the club's golf pro, Hamilton, golf pros in charge of daily course management, maintenance and providing golf tips to other golfers.

“I’ve been here 20 years now and it’s a great community to live in. The golf club, for the five or six months of the year we have, is extremely busy. It keeps me very busy. We’re hoping to get going again in April,” Hamilton said.

Chamber awards were given in 22 categories Saturday. 

And, as with so many other successful clubs and organizations, MacDonald added “the volunteers we have at the golf course, we couldn’t do anything without them.”

The full text of a release from the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce with the complete list of winners follows.

SAULT STE. MARIE, ON – It was a celebration of innovation, creativity, leadership and entrepreneurship, as the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce (SSMCOC) handed out its Outstanding Business Achievement Awards on Saturday evening at the Machine Shop.

The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce was proud to welcome Ontario Lottery & Gaming Corporation (OLG) and Gateway Casinos Sault Ste. Marie as title sponsors for this year’s Outstanding Business Achievement Awards, as well as Sootoday.com, returning as presenting sponsor.

Award nominations were collected from a call for nominations from the Chamber membership and the public in late 2019. In all, almost 300 nominations were received for 22 award categories. From those nominations, almost 130 of the nominees met the established award criteria and let their business, agency or individual names stand for nomination.

Those businesses, agencies or individuals standing for nomination were required to respond to a series of questions to demonstrate why they, or the business, met the criteria for the specific award or awards nominated. These submissions, along with any provided supplemental materials, were then considered by the Chamber’s judging committee.

The judging committee is drawn from the Chamber membership and previous award recipients. These members form a group of individuals with exceptional integrity and business experience across a wide variety of sectors. The nominee submissions are vetted against the judges’ background and areas of expertise and any conflicts of interest are managed by reassigning the judging of that award category to another committee member.

Submissions are assessed through a numeric scoring process and measured on the nominee’s ability to demonstrate their qualifications against the award criteria. The recipient of each award is determined by the nominee that receives the highest combined average of judges’ scores.

The recipients of this year’s Outstanding Business Achievement Awards were:

Algoma Power Inc. was awarded this year’s Safe Work, Sound Business Award, sponsored by Workplace Safety North. The Safe Work, Sound Business Award recognizes a business that uses a safe work management system, participates in workplace and/or community injury prevention programs and has outstanding injury-free frequency and injury severity performance.

Sault College of Applied Arts & Technology was presented with the Employer of Year Award, sponsored Employment Solutions. This award recognizes an employer who has created cultures and communities, through every aspect of their business.

Angie DiGasparro of TD Canada Trust was awarded the Customer First Award – Individual, sponsored by Smyl’s Highland Ford. This award recognizes an individual who continuously raises customer service to new standards of excellence and is a role model for others in customer service.

Georgina Foods - McDonald’s was presented with the Diversity Award, sponsored by the Algoma Workforce Investment Corporation. This award recognizes a business or organization that embraces, celebrates and applies holistic inclusion and participation of a diverse people, making the workplace a better environment in which to work, and the community a better place in which to live, work and raise a family.

The Community Investment Awards, sponsored by the Sault Ste. Marie YMCA, highlight outstanding community service. The recipients of these awards contribute to the well-being of the community as a whole through initiatives such as sourcing products and/or services locally, retailing or utilizing local products, employment growth and supporting the community through charitable activities.

The Community Investment Award (up to 9 employees) was presented to CC Communications.

The Community Investment Award (10+ employees) was presented to the Ontario Finnish Resthome Association.

Village Media was the recipient of the Innovation Award, sponsored by the Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre. This award recognizes a business that has successfully incorporated a new idea, device or method or has utilized the application of better solutions to meet new requirements, internal needs or market needs.

Erica Hogan of Hogan's Homestead was presented with the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, sponsored by CTS Canadian Career College. The Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognizes the outstanding achievement of young entrepreneur(s) between 18 and 39 years of age. The award is given to an individual responsible for the success and growth of a Sault Ste. Marie-based company, who exemplifies the qualities of effective leadership, innovatively applies know-how, demonstrates excellent potential for growth, appreciates the importance of social, cultural, and environmental awareness and has demonstrated commitment to the wider community.

City Meat Market was the recipient of the Downtown Business of the Year Award, sponsored by SK Group Inc. In support of the City of Sault Ste. Marie Downtown Strategy, as well as the strategic plan of the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce, this award recognizes a business that is invested in the downtown business community and contributes to downtown Sault Ste. Marie. This award honours their commitment to running a business in the heart of our city and their role in creating a vibrant downtown.

Village Media was presented with the Beyond Sault Ste. Marie Award, sponsored by the Sault Ste. Marie Airport Development Corporation and Kewadin Casinos Hotel & Convention Center. The Beyond Sault Ste. Marie Award recognizes businesses in any industry, for excellence in the development of export markets for their products or services, through implementing a new export strategy within the last three years that has positively affected its bottom line. Beyond SSM considers businesses that have succeeded in expanding outside of SSM as well as exporting goods and services.

Sault Ste. Marie KOA Holiday was awarded the Customer First Award – Business, Non-Profit or Agency, sponsored by Great Lakes Honda. This award showcases a business or non-profit that places the customer experience at the heart of their business strategy and builds a sustainable culture of customer service within their organization.

Garden River First Nation (GRFN) Bingo Enterprises was the recipient of the Indigenous Business of the Year, sponsored by Tenaris. This award recognizes a business which is operating or being managed with a minimum of 51 per cent ownership by an Indigenous person or group. To be considered, the business has distinguished itself by fostering growth, innovation, marketing strategy and consumer excellence, while showing leadership and dedication to the preservation of culture, values and identity.

The Twinkie Foundation was awarded the Community Non Profit Business of the Year Award, sponsored by Dumanski Office Interiors. This award recognizes and rewards excellence and innovation among non-profit organizations resulting in significant social impact within Sault Ste. Marie and the Algoma district.

InSPAration Float Centre was presented with the Rising Star New Business Award, sponsored by KPMG LLP. This award recognizes a business that has been in operation for no less than one year and no more than three years and has demonstrated strong potential by way of growth, innovation, and leadership. Additionally, the business has demonstrated a culture of risk-taking and trailblazing and has positioned itself to achieve similar successes in the future through new or innovative product or service, quality of merchandise, customer service, job creation, growth potential, and market served.

This year’s OBAAs marked the first time the Chamber presented its Indigenous Professional of the Year Award sponsored by Algoma University and Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig. This award is presented to a person who has made an impact in the Indigenous, Metis and Sault Ste. Marie communities and in so doing so, serves as an inspiration to us all. The recipient of this year’s award was Mitch Case, Director Student Services with Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig.

The Sault Ste. Marie Public Library was presented with the Leader in Accessibility Award, sponsored by Ergo Office Plus. This award recognizes an organization that shows leadership in integrating and providing accessible and barrier-free working conditions for employees and accessibility in customer service. This business or organization values the contributions of persons with disabilities, promotes the development of an inclusive workplace culture and is compliant with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

The Chamber presents three Business of the Year awards based on business size: To be considered, a business will have distinguished themselves by fostering growth, innovation, marketing strategy and consumer service excellence in their sectors.

The Business of the Year Award (up to 9 employees), sponsored by Soo Mill Buildall, was presented to Krown Rust Control Sault Ste Marie.

The Business of the Year Award (10 - 25 employees), sponsored by Algoma Office Equipment, was presented to the Sault Ste. Marie Golf Club.

The Business of the Year Award (26+ employees), sponsored by Superior Auto Group, was presented to McDougall Energy Inc.

Chamber Board of Directors member, Derek Jackson of Wardlaw Heating and Cooling received the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce Volunteer of the Year Award. Initiated in 1985, the Volunteer of the Year Award is given annually to an individual, or individuals, whose time commitment and contributions to the Chamber have been outstanding.

Don Mitchell, recently retired from Algoma Insurance, and a two-time President of the Chamber of Commerce was presented with the Skipper Manzzutti Award for Business Achievement. Named after one of the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce's dedicated past presidents, Captain Feliciano "Skipper" Manzzutti, this award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated outstanding business achievement within the past year, or number of years. Like the award's namesake, the recipient of this award has set a high standard for exemplary entrepreneurial and community-minded achievement.

Sandra Hollingsworth was presented with the Paul Dalseg Community Achievement Award. The Paul Dalseg Award recognizes a businessperson in Sault Ste. Marie who has demonstrated exemplary interest in the community, and in so doing, has made a major, outstanding and unique achievement or contribution to the life of the community.

Asima Vezina, President and Vice-Chancellor of Algoma University, was the recipient of this year’s President’s Award. Initiated in 1982, the President’s Award recognizes someone who makes an exceptional effort, going above and beyond the call of duty in any area of business and community development. The recipient of this award is chosen by the Chamber’s Past President.

In addition to this year’s individual award sponsors, the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce would like to thank The Machine Shop, the Northern Grand Gardens and Kevanna Fine Photography.

About the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce

The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of 700 plus business and agencies in Sault Ste. Marie and has been serving the needs of this community since 1889. The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce will lead the way as the voice of business, advancing economic prosperity for its membership and the business community. Learn more about the SSMCOC at www.ssmcoc.com