Each year, Az Business magazine, a publication of AZ Big Media, presents the Champions of Change Awards to recognize those dynamic innovators and trailblazers who are changing Arizona’s business landscape through leadership, visionary thinking and philanthropy. The Champions of Change Awards honor both individuals and organizations. The Champions of Change Awards will be held Tuesday, May 13, 2025. Each day leading up to the event, we will preview one category of finalists. Today, meet the Champions of Change finalists for most small- and medium-sized business of the year.

Sponsors of the Champions of Change Awards include BOK Financial and Diversified Partners (spotlight sponsors), Optum (dessert sponsor) and Wilde Wealth Management Group (step-and-repeat sponsor).

To learn more about the Champions of Change Awards of to purchase tickets, click here.

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Small- and medium-sized businesss of the year finalists

Here are the Champions of Change Awards finalists for small- and medium-sized business of the year:

Avista Senior Living

Avista Senior Living is a premier operator of assisted living and memory care communities across Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Idaho, Washington, and California. They offer a range of options to meet the senior living needs of almost any budget – from assisted living to memory care.

Avondale Toyota

Avondale Toyota is more than a car dealership—they are a dedicated partner to the West Valley community. Through financial contributions, volunteerism, and sponsorships, the dealership supports over 25 local organizations, including schools, youth sports programs, and nonprofits. In 2024 alone, Avondale Toyota donated to 59 organizations across Arizona.

Ballet Arizona 

Ballet is truly for everyone at Ballet Arizona! The valley’s professional ballet company aspires to break down barriers, ignite imaginations, and inspire a lifelong love of ballet and dance. Ballet Arizona works year-round to make the art of ballet accessible through dance education, expansion of facilities and programming that resonate with all Arizona audiences.

BreatheEV

BreatheEV is making charging easy, like OpenTable did for restaurant reservations, allowing drivers to charge when they want and need, property owners to install fewer chargers, and reducing strain on the grid. BreatheEV deployed their first property last year, since expanding into two states. BreatheEV will change the world.

Cordia

Cordia’s Phoenix system, established in 2001, embodies innovation, sustainability, and community partnership. As the central hub for district cooling in downtown Phoenix, Cordia is committed to environmental responsibility, energy efficiency, and collaborative relationships. Cordia’s evolution has significantly impacted the city, community, and environment, with a focus on achieving environmental, social and governance goals.

Local First Arizona

Local First Arizona empowers communities by supporting over 17,000 small businesses statewide, fostering economic resilience through initiatives like the Fuerza Local Business Accelerator, which has graduated more than 1,100 entrepreneurs since 2013. Their efforts enhance local economies, promote sustainability, and strengthen Arizona’s diverse communities.

sneakybird 

Founder and restaurant veteran Dan Chaon has innovated a cutting-edge technology – both an state-of-the-art oven and top-secret panko recipe – that allows for a Never Ever Fried cooking process that retains the juiciness and flavor of fried chicken without using a drop of added oil, offering a guilt-free indulgence.

SugarJam The Southern Kitchen

Dana Dumas, CEO, founder and executive chef of SugarJam Cookies, SugarJam The Southern Kitchen, and SJ Concepts, has grown the SugarJam brand from an at-home bakery to the largest African American and woman-owned business in North Scottsdale. In 2024, SugarJam was named one of the top 45 Black-owned restaurants in the country by Ebony Magazine.

The MJ Companies

The MJ Companies exists to inspire the success, fulfillment, and wellbeing of each person it serves: its associates and their families, business partners, clients, and the community. In 2020, the company created the MJ Foundation with the goal of fulfilling the latter part of its purpose.

Westwood Development Group

As a small reservation business, Westwood brokered an agreement with Canadian First Nations Alexander Tubular to emerge as a major supplier of HDPE pipe for Arizona’s mining industry and in 2025, negotiated a relationship with Morgan Construction to emerge in the mining industry as a competitive civil construction company.