County Tipperary Chamber Business Awards 2026 Winners Announced
More than 420 guests gathered at Hotel Minella, Clonmel, on Friday, 25 September, for the County Tipperary Chamber Business Awards 2026.
The awards celebrated the businesses, employers and organisations making a difference in communities across County Tipperary.
Stakelums completes an awards treble
Stakelums Home & Hardware was named County Tipperary Business of the Year 2026.
It was one of three awards presented to the Thurles family business, which also won Family Business of the Year and Excellence in Customer Experience.
The Overall Business of the Year Award was sponsored by H&MV Engineering, the main sponsor of this year’s awards.
Two special awards were also presented during the evening:
Pat Ryan, founder of Ryans Cleaning, received the President’s Award, sponsored by Bulmers. Pat and his wife Philomena built Ryans Cleaning from a local Tipperary business into a company serving major events and venues across Ireland and the UK.
Clonmel native Pat McGrath received the Outstanding Recognition Award, sponsored by Fiserv, for his contribution to engineering, international business, public service and regional development.
County Tipperary Chamber CEO Michelle Aylward said:
“It was a great night for Tipperary. The room was full of people who create employment, support and train their teams, invest in their towns and contribute to their communities.
We see the finished product or service, but we don’t always see the risks taken, the difficult decisions or the long hours behind it. These awards give us an opportunity to recognise that work. Congratulations to every winner and finalist, and thank you to our sponsors for helping us make the night possible.”
County Tipperary Chamber Business Awards 2026 winners
Retailer of the Year: Foxylocks Clonmel
Sponsored by the Love Tipperary Gift Card
Best Café/Restaurant: The Junction Gastrobar & Guesthouse
Sponsored by Value Centre
Creative Business: I Left You A Note
Sponsored by County Tipperary Chamber
Excellence in Hospitality & Tourism: Cashel Palace
Sponsored by Waystone
Best Emerging/New Business: Market 54
Sponsored by Local Enterprise Office Tipperary
Best Small Employer: SYS Financial
Sponsored by Tipperary County Council
Best SME: Chartered Capital Financial Planning Ltd
Sponsored by AIB
Family Business of the Year: Stakelums Home & Hardware
Sponsored by Clancy
Diversity & Inclusion: Unitec IT Solutions
Sponsored by Boston Scientific
Best Large Employer: MSD Ballydine
Sponsored by EY
Sustainable Initiatives: The Talbot Hotel Clonmel
Sponsored by Uisce Éireann
Corporate Social Responsibility: Glenpatrick Spring
Sponsored by MSD
Best Not-for-Profit: Fethard Town Park
Sponsored by Unitec IT Solutions
Training & Development: AV Star Systems Ltd
Sponsored by County Tipperary Chamber Skillnet
Excellence in Customer Experience: Stakelums Home & Hardware
Sponsored by Ryans Cleaning
President’s Award: Pat Ryan
Sponsored by Bulmers
Outstanding Recognition Award: Pat McGrath
Sponsored by Fiserv
Overall Business of the Year: Stakelums Home & Hardware
Sponsored by H&MV Engineering
Thank you to everyone who supported the awards. The evening was hosted by Fran Curry of Tipp FM and attended by Minister Jack Chambers, along with representatives from local and national government and the wider business community.
County Tipperary Chamber would like to thank H&MV Engineering, all our category sponsors, our independent judges, Hotel Minella and everyone who helped make the evening possible.We would also like to thank our media partners—Tipp FM, The Nationalist and The Nenagh Guardian—and our charity partner, Cuán Saor.
Most importantly, congratulations to every winner and finalist. The standard of this year’s entries showed once again the strength, ambition and variety of businesses operating across County Tipperary.
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