Sandra Dillon Design wins 2021 Best Industry Partner at the Australasian Cake Oscars

We have some very exciting news… 
Sandra Dillon Design has won the 2021 Best Industry Partner of the Year at the Australasian Cake Oscar Awards! This prestigious event is hosted by The Australian Cake Artists & Decorators Association Inc. (ACADA) and is considered a highlight of the International Cake Show Australia (ICSA). A glittering night to celebrate and recognise talent, achievements and contributions in the cake and cookie decorating industry. 

We were thrilled to be nominated in the Best Industry Partner category. To be voted a finalist amongst industry heavyweights was amazing! To win – considering the contribution of our fellow finalists including Bakels (who we share this award with) is phenomenal! We never expected it!

The Australasian Cake Oscar Awards recognise both small and large business alike. Our win speaks volumes about ACADA’s enduring commitment to promote and support ALL who inhabit the world of cake, cookies and sugarcraft in Australia. For this we are grateful.

In turn, Sandra Dillon Design has been happy to support ACADA and ICSA from the start. We felt it a good fit. In many ways we share common visions. Since our beginning we have strived to design products that are well considered, beautiful and functional for both beginners and experts in the cake and cookie decorating industry. We strongly believe in fostering creativity and promoting the incredible depth of talent present in Australia. We relish opportunities to streamline the decorating process that hopefully enables businesses to grow and find their path to success. We like to think our passion has translated to partnering with industry on many levels. We work with individual home bakers to professional decorators, teachers and retailers. 

Our support for ACADA is also a reflection of our commitment to the industry – consider it giving back in some small way. Apart from participating as an ICSA vendor, and providing discounts to ACADA members, we wanted to do more. For some years now we have assisted with graphic design and artwork for some of the marketing material required for ICSA and the Cake Oscars. Imagine for a moment the enormous effort needed to put on an International Cake Show AND an Industry Awards night as well! Lending a hand with the show program, some banners and the like, is our way to provide a little support.

Even though COVID-19 made attending this year far too risky for our business based in Western Australia, we still managed to burn the midnight oil (as expected) and get artwork done in the nick of time! As with previous years, Joan McDermott, National President of ACADA, offered her sincere appreciation and we were pleased we could assist, never suspecting we would receive any accolades. 

Whilst all show events require massive planning and effort including the inevitable last minute changes and tweaks, this year was particularly challenging for Joan and the ACADA team. It was essential the show met all safety requirements needed when a world-wide pandemic is present! For this, and for all previous years, we’d like to thank the ACADA team for their hard work to provide spectacular Cake Shows and the Australasian Cake Oscar Awards. 

On that note, we’d like to personally thank Joan McDermott for her support, as well as her kind words recognising our assistance at the Oscars. We hear she gave a lovely speech thanking us, but it is us, that should thank her. Without Joan’s tireless and unwavering downright hard slog – the event would simply not happen. Since the International Cake Show’s inception, Joan’s generous spirit has helped us grow.  

In addition we’d like to thank the wonderful Angela from Latorta. Angela accepted our trophy and said a few words on our behalf. Latorta won Best Small Retailer of 2021 so Angela was very busy on stage that night. We had attempted to play a little joke on her prior to the Cake Show, in retaliation she threatened to grab our trophy and scratch out our name and replace it with “Latorta”. An evil plan that thankfully was only played out in photoshop. We’ve received the trophy now and are relieved it is in good order. 

And last but not least, we’d like to thank YOU! To all of our customers and everyone who voted for us, we are forever grateful, your continued support is unmeasurable. The recognition this award brings has lifted our spirits and made us even more determined to partner with industry in the future. We’re looking forward to the year ahead!

For those that are unfamiliar with the Australian Cake Artists and Decorators Association, they are Australia’s peak industry body – run by our industry, for our industry. If you’d like more information about ACADA, including how to become a member of this not for profit organisation, you can check out their website here – www.acada.com.au
Becoming a member also gives you access to their $20 million Cake Decorators Public Liability and Product Insurance – an absolute essential policy, excellent for home based decorators. You’ll also receive ACADA business partner discounts, including ours! You can check out all the winners and finalists of the 2021 Australasian Cake Oscar Awards here – www.acada.com.au/2021-finalists-and-winners