Waverley Business Awards 2026 Finalist

Laser by Tom — Journal

Waverley Council Finalist 2026 Beauty & Cosmetic Services

Laser by Tom is a 2026 Waverley Business Awards finalist

Waverley Council has announced the finalists in its 2026 Brightest & Best Business Awards. Laser by Tom is one of five finalists in Beauty & Cosmetic Services. Here's what the awards are, who runs them, and how the public vote works.

Tom Seelbach August 2026 4 min read

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The short version

What Happened

On 11 August 2026, Waverley Council announced the finalists in The Brightest & Best Business Awards 2026 — the awards most people around here just call the Waverley Business Awards. There are 69 finalist places across 13 categories, drawn from several hundred entries across the Waverley local government area.

Laser by Tom is one of five finalists in the Beauty & Cosmetic Services category. Every finalist in every category is also automatically entered into the People's Choice Award, which is decided entirely by public vote and closes at midnight on 11 September 2026.

Being a finalist is recognition of how a small business is run — its presentation, customer service, community contribution and local impact. It is not a clinical or medical endorsement, and it says nothing about treatment outcomes for any individual. I'd rather say that plainly than let a badge do work it shouldn't be doing.

Background

What Are the Waverley Business Awards?

The official name is The Brightest & Best Business Awards. They're run annually by Waverley Council and are open to any business trading in the Waverley local government area — Bondi Junction, Bondi, Bondi Beach, North Bondi, Bronte, Tamarama, Waverley, Queens Park, Dover Heights and neighbouring pockets.

Businesses self-nominate into one or more categories and answer a written submission on how they operate, how they serve customers, and what they contribute locally. A judging panel of Council, business and community representatives shortlists the finalists. Size doesn't matter — sole operators and home-based businesses compete alongside multi-site operations, and franchise stores are judged on the individual local store only.

For a solo, appointment-only business like mine, that's the appeal of it: the assessment is about how the place is actually run, not how big it is.

2026 Timeline

Key Dates

Entries openedMon 23 June 2026

Entries closedMon 27 July 2026

Finalists announcedTue 11 August 2026

People's Choice voting closesMidnight, Fri 11 Sept 2026

Awards nightWed 14 October 2026

VenueBondi Pavilion, Bondi Beach

Winners and runners-up in all 13 categories are announced at the awards night, along with the People's Choice winner.

The categories

Who's in the 2026 Field

The 2026 awards run across thirteen categories: Beauty & Cosmetic Services, Best New Business, Business Woman of the Year, Childcare & Education, Creative & Digital, Entrepreneur of the Year, Fitness & Wellness, Healthcare & Medical, Hospitality Entertainment & Tourism, Professional Services, Retail & E-Commerce, Trade Services, and Sustainability Excellence.

Most categories have five or six finalists. Beauty & Cosmetic Services has five. The full finalist list for every category is published on Waverley Council's business awards page — worth a scroll if you live locally, because there are a lot of good small operators on that list who don't get much airtime.

Sixty-nine finalist places. One studio, one operator, one room in Bondi Junction. I'll take it.

Tom Seelbach

People's Choice

How the Public Vote Works

The People's Choice Award is separate from the judged categories. Every finalist is entered automatically, no application required, and the result is decided on public votes alone — no panel, no mystery shopper, no submission. It's run through Waverley Council's Have Your Say platform.

Open Council's People's Choice voting page (link below).

Scroll the finalist list and select the business you'd like to support.

Submit. It takes under a minute, and it's one vote per person.

Voting closes midnight, 11 September 2026. The winner is announced at Bondi Pavilion on 14 October.

Waverley Council · Have Your Say

Vote in the People's Choice Award

If you'd like to support a small independent Bondi Junction business, you can cast your vote on Council's voting page. Laser by Tom is listed under Beauty & Cosmetic Services.

Open the Voting Page

Voting is hosted and administered by Waverley Council. Closes midnight, 11 September 2026.

Straight talk

What a Finalist Badge Does — and Doesn't — Mean

Business awards get used as marketing furniture, so it's worth being precise about what this one is.

What it reflects

Recognised

• How the business is presented and run day to day
• Customer service and communication
• Contribution to the local Waverley business community
• Consistency as a small independent operator

What it doesn't reflect

Not assessed

• Clinical outcomes or treatment results
• Any medical or health-practitioner endorsement
• Suitability of any treatment for any individual
• A judgement by Council on safety or technique

Whether a laser treatment is appropriate for you depends on your skin, your history and your goals — and that gets worked out in a consultation, not on an awards list. Individual results vary, and some concerns are better referred to a GP or dermatologist. That's the honest position and it doesn't change because there's a badge on the homepage.

About the business

Laser by Tom, Bondi Junction

Laser by Tom is a private, appointment-only laser studio at Suite 2, Ground Floor, 35 Spring St, Bondi Junction. It's a single-operator business — every treatment is performed personally by Tom, on three platforms:

Candela VBeam (pulsed dye laser) for facial redness, visible vessels and rosacea. Picosecond laser for sun damage and pigmentation. Fractional CO₂ for acne scarring and skin rejuvenation.

Consultations are free and there's no obligation attached to them. If a treatment isn't the right fit, I'll say so.

Common Questions

Frequently Asked

What are the Waverley Business Awards?

They're officially The Brightest & Best Business Awards, run annually by Waverley Council. Any business trading in the Waverley local government area can self-nominate. A judging panel shortlists finalists, and winners and runners-up are announced at an awards night. The 2026 edition covers 13 categories.

When is the 2026 awards night?

Wednesday 14 October 2026, at Bondi Pavilion in Bondi Beach. All category winners and runners-up are announced on the night, along with the People's Choice Award.

When does People's Choice voting close?

Midnight on 11 September 2026. Voting is hosted on Waverley Council's Have Your Say platform and is open to the public.

How many finalists are there in 2026?

69 finalist places across 13 categories. Some businesses are finalists in more than one category, so the number of individual businesses is slightly lower. Beauty & Cosmetic Services has five finalists.

Which category is Laser by Tom in?

Beauty & Cosmetic Services. As with every finalist, Laser by Tom is also automatically entered in the separate People's Choice Award, which is decided entirely by public vote.

Do I need to be a client to vote?

No. The People's Choice Award is a community vote run by Council and is open to the public — you're voting for a local business you'd like to see recognised, not reviewing a treatment.

Has Laser by Tom won an award?

No. Laser by Tom is a finalist in the 2026 Brightest & Best Business Awards. Winners aren't announced until the awards night on 14 October 2026. This page will be updated after the result.

Where can I see the full finalist list?

On Waverley Council's business awards page, which publishes every category and every finalist, plus the official terms, category descriptions and key dates.

T

Tom Seelbach — Laser by Tom, Bondi Junction

Tom operates a private, appointment-only laser studio in Bondi Junction, working with the Candela VBeam for redness and vascular concerns, picosecond laser for pigmentation and sun damage, and fractional CO₂ for acne scarring and skin rejuvenation. All treatments are performed personally by Tom. Tom is a trained laser operator and is not an AHPRA-registered health practitioner. Free consultations available.

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