On 19 February 2026, 120 business owners, partners, and industry leaders came together at Crown Melbourne for the Business Benchmark Group Gala Night.
The night shone a spotlight on top performers in trades and construction from around the country and drove home a clear message for the year ahead: lower founder dependency and boost enterprise value through the Exit Plan Pathway™.
This wasn’t just about revenue. It was about maturity. Real leadership. Operational excellence. Teams that work. Businesses building true assets—not just jobs.z
“Tonight is not just about awards or trophies. It is about standards. It is about raising the benchmark and empowering founder-led business owners to achieve continuous business and life success.”
- Phil Smith, CEO, Business Benchmark Group.
The night zeroed in on a message that hits home for established, founder-led businesses.
If your business can’t run without you, it’s not really an asset—it’s just a job.
The Exit Plan Pathway™ gives founders a real framework to move beyond day-to-day reliance and build lasting value. The awards celebrate businesses that are actually putting this into practice with stronger leadership, better systems, capable teams, and real customer impact.
Here are our Award categories, nominees, and winners.
SJ Electrical Contracting Pty Ltd
Insitu Landscaping
Lectrical Services Pty Ltd
Metro Sheetmetal and Fabrication
Bryce Electrics
Sparky Spot Electrical Services
Reid Signage Services Pty Ltd
Boston Tree Care Pty Ltd
CR Stewart Electrical
Limitless Landscapes
PK Plumbing and Gasfitting
United Plastering Tasmania
About Time Projects
Briody Constructions
Aqua Solutions Plumbing
Burchell Built
Dobija Creative Pty Ltd
JP Electrical and Air Conditioning
KSA Facility Services
Built Homes & Renovations Pty Ltd
J.O. Plumbing Australia
Drew Built Homes and Construction Pty Ltd
Arrowood Homes
Capital Air Group Pty Ltd
Noosa Electric Co
R&H Plumbing Solutions
Tassie Cabinets Pty Ltd
Bradley Alan Build
DC Building VIC Pty Ltd
Meridian Concepts Group
ProGlow Electrics
Smartnet Electrics Pty Ltd
Beaumade Builds Pty Ltd
Kingston Con
Melbourne Glass Company
Westside Packaging Systems Australia
Enhar
Outright Plumbing
Charles Warren Constructions Pty Ltd
Friths Plumbing and Civil Construction
Michaelis Construction
Di Martino Earthworks
Grant Chugg Plumbing
Create Expectations
Pazzi Marble & Granite
Pragma Design
Rose Landscape Services
Pragma Design
Di Martino Earthworks
Friths Plumbing and Civil Construction
Outright Plumbing
Create Expectations
Rose Landscape Services
Active clients for more than 60 months
English Steel Drafting
J.O. Plumbing Australia
Profinish Roof Plumbing
Brighter Lines
Westside Packaging Systems Australia
B&E Built Commercial Carpentry
Grant Chugg Plumbing
Di Martino Earthworks
Enduro Builders
Phoenix Construction & Development Services
These businesses represent a long-term commitment to structured growth and leadership evolution.
Rose Landscape Services
Grant Chugg Plumbing
Create Expectations
These organisations have demonstrated sustained excellence, strategic maturity and long-term contribution to the BBG community.
Growth in leadership maturity, delegation, culture and people capability
Nominees included Habitat Carpenters, Friths Plumbing and Civil Construction, AED Project Services, Ben Miller Creative Pools, Mitch McGuire Goodform Co, Ethan Chittick B&E, Tamileigh Chirgwin PK Plumbing and Gasfitting, Jarryd Dingley Direct Flow Plumbing Group, Boston Tree Care, Luke Perovic Adelaide Plastering Solutions and Cortrols Temperature Systems.
Documented processes, consistency and accountability rhythms
Nominees included About Time Projects, Phoenix Construction & Development Services, JNJ Plumbing & Electrical, Melbourne Glass, Outright Plumbing, English Steel Drafting and Goodform co.
Hiring quality, training, retention and internal leadership
Nominees included Phoenix Construction & Development Services, AED Project Services Pty Ltd, Premium Plumbing, Beaumade Builds, B&E Built, PK Plumbing and Gasfitting, and Create Expectations.
Nominees included Built Homes & Renovations Pty Ltd, Allstone Pty Ltd, KSA Services, Aqua Solutions, Briody Construction, Limitless Landscapes, Instant Lawn Adelaide, Create Expectations, Outright Plumbing, Stephen O'Keefe Builders and English Steel Drafting.
Mentoring, participation and generosity within the BBG tribe
Nominees included Gary Sinclair and Kelly Clinton from Brighter Lines with COH and Rotary, Grant Chugg Villages for Life, Stephen O'Keefe and Jon Gatland, CMBM.
The 2026 Gala Night set a clear standard.
Revenue and hard work aren’t enough.
Enterprise value is built through:
• Leadership depth
• Clear accountability
• Documented systems
• Strong teams
• Consistent customer experience
• Reduced founder reliance
For established trade and construction business owners, the real question isn’t how hard you can work. It’s whether your business can run, grow, and scale without you at the centre of every decision.
The businesses recognized at Crown Melbourne prove it’s possible.
If you are operating above $1.5M in turnover and still heavily involved in daily decisions, this is the stage where structure matters most.
The Exit Plan Pathway™ isn’t about leaving your business tomorrow. It’s about building a business that gives you real options.
Options to step back, scale, sell or transition - and that starts with lowering founder dependency.