Businesses across Glastonbury, Street and Shepton Mallet are celebrating after making the shortlist for the Somerset Business Awards 2026 — but Wells is the only one of our four patch towns without a single nominee this year.

The awards, now in their 21st year and run by Somerset Chamber of Commerce, attracted a record number of entries. Judges will begin site visits before announcing the finalists in February, ahead of the grand final at the Bath and West Showground in Shepton Mallet on 26 March 2026.

Glastonbury secured two strong contenders in the Medium Business of the Year category: The Middlewick, and The Sleek Easy Clean. Both have grown rapidly in recent years, earning recognition in one of the most competitive categories of the awards.

Street also features, with Brookside Academy apprentice Harvey Lavallee shortlisted for Apprentice of the Year for his work with Strode College.

Shepton Mallet is well represented too. Civils Store appears twice — in Large Business of the Year and Employer of the Year — while Haskins Furniture is shortlisted for both Service Excellence and the Business Resilience and Growth Award. Refresco, one of the area's biggest manufacturers, also appears across several categories, including Large Business of the Year and Manufacturing and Engineering.

Wells, however, has no shortlisted entries across any of the award categories this year, despite the strong county-wide showing.

Somerset Chamber Managing Director David Crew said the spread of entries across Somerset remained impressive. "It was great to see so many entries from all corners of the county, representing a wide range of sectors and industries," he said. "The awards are a fantastic way to share success stories and I am grateful for the sponsorship and support of so many of Somerset's leading businesses."

Judges will now visit each shortlisted organisation before finalists are revealed early next year.

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