A Night at the Australian Beauty Industry Awards .

By James Vivian

I don’t know about you, but there is a weekend in August that occurs every year that I really get truly excited about.

What I once used to refer to as ‘The Beauty Expo Weekend’ I now refer to, to anyone who will listen, as our ‘industry’s weekend to shine’, and one of my favourite components of this weekend is the ABIAs.

Having been participating in the ABIAs since its inception 15 years ago, the ABIAs is always so much more to me than just a fabulous evening where you get to dress up and schmooze with your peers.

To me, preparation for the ABIAs happens months and months prior at the time where submissions for entering the awards opens. We generally know what categories we wish to submit entries for as we select these based on areas of specific focus within our business.

If I’m honest, I have often looked towards specific ABIA categories, in particular the information required to answer the questions, to see where I am lacking and what I might need to focus on to be able to enter this category one day, but on a larger scale how I can do better in business.

One example of this was when I went to enter the Clinic of the Year Award many years ago. I had to cease my submission at the question that asked about our Green Policy. ‘What’s a Green Policy?’ I thought and why don’t we have one. It was this question that ignited my passion for sustainability and how we can support this cause within our business.

I consider being able to enter the ABIA awards a great honour and privilege, all narrowed down to 500 words per question. I am always so proud of sending off the submission after taking the time to collate a true and detailed appraisal of what we’ve been up to the last 12 months and I celebrate this moment with anyone else as we press that ‘send’ button. To simply enter, it’s already a win.

From here, we wait impatiently for the finalists to be announced and that’s when the real excitement/nerves set in. For me, I don’t enter not wanting to be a finalist. And of course, a win would be great but it’s never expected or given.

With each year, it's undeniable the calibre of submissions, finalists and also winners who are selected to receive a win. You can especially see this even before the ABIAs occur as their presence and great work is exhibited on their websites and social media.

I personally adore listening to the speeches as you gain further insights into who is behind these unique businesses and you often get to see the blood, sweat and tears that goes into building an award-winning business (which we all know it takes, and then some).

A true highlight for me each year is watching the announcement of the Humanitarian Award. This year, I was blown away to hear about the incredible work that Humanitarian Award recipient, Karla McDiarmid, had been up to all these years – all of which were totally unknown to me.

When I saw Karla out the back after receiving her award, I (probably inappropriately) questioned Karla as to why she does not promote the selfless work that she does more. Karla replied modestly that she feels that sharing it publicly loses its impact. And I totally disagree! Case in point: after Karla received her award, Dr. Pugliese from Circadia donated $10,000 to further support Karla’s endeavours.

I believe we can all learn from and inspire one another, especially when it comes to philanthropy and the great work that our individual businesses are doing to give back to our communities and to our environments. Don’t be afraid to share a donation, or share an initiative that you and your businesses are passionate about and supporting. I believe as an industry we have a huge capacity to give back and to further our impact beyond healthy, glowing complexions.

This year, we were exceptionally fortunate to win three awards. All are very meaningful in very different ways. For Team of the Year, I spoke briefly in our acceptance speech that we don’t have a great business, we have a great team. They set the bar for our success and they continue to raise it every day. For Director of the Year, this was extremely meaningful as I had applied for this award before and whilst unsuccessful, I am always laser-focused on directing our business in the most unique, happy and heathy standards for our team and clients, as well as providing a good example of the great work we can do as an industry. And finally, Clinic of the Year in our territory is a bloody incredible way to know that you’re on the right track.

Now I don’t know about you, but I always have a real come down post the ABIAs. The excitement, the anticipation and the pressure that goes into participating, whether taking home an award or not, leaves me a bit sad and depressed. Don’t know why. Always lots to consider and be mindful of. Lots of ‘What does this actually mean?’ and ‘Am I really worthy?’. But then this clears and you’re left with one thought: I’ve got a lot of work to do! The accolade is never lost on me. It’s an honour to enter, and even more so to win, but it’s what you do with the award, I believe, that really matters.

There are so many exceptional businesses that do not participate in the ABIA awards. There are so many incredible businesses that enter and make it only so far. Winning awards isn’t everything. Being in business is and the impact we’re having on our clients lives and our communities that really matter.

@jamesvivian