GAIL Steele is no stranger to the handshake that comes after winning an award, and the Warwick business awards are no exception.

For four years, Steele's Bakery Cafe has featured as a winner in various categories and Mrs Steele said it was worth every entry.

"It's definitely good," Mrs Steele said.

"It really makes you appreciate what you're doing and makes you realise you must be doing something right."

Mrs Steele said it was a chance to sit back and see your business from another perspective.

"It makes you look at your business and lets you assess where you're going and then you can gauge if you're moving forward, which is vital in business," Mrs Steele said.

She encouraged all businesses to nominate themselves or others who had made a mark in the business world to keep the attitude around the Rose City positive.

"Everyone goes into business thinking 'this is going to be great', yet some don't listen to customers or aren't on track and the business awards are a great way to assess how you're actually going," Mrs Steele said.

"It gives a business a chance to find faults and correct them."

Her best advice for nominees was to read the questionnaire carefully.

"What you think is the answer to a question, may not even be what they're asking - so read it well," she said.

In 2008, Steele's Bakery Cafe took out the Best New Business category, and Best Retail Business the year after.

In 2010 and 2011 Steele's won the award for Best Retail With More Than Five Employees.