Congratulations to Matt Vaughan, owner of West Seattle-founded Easy Street Records, for winning King County’s “Small Business of the Year” award, presented by County Executive Dow Constantine at a celebration in Bellevue this week. We stopped by Easy Street in The Junction to photograph and talk with Vaughan afterward; he said the honor is “humbling” and means a lot coming from fellow West Seattleite Constantine. He also told us he was surprised – because one of the other two finalists is a cupcake company, and, well, “everybody loves cupcakes.” (We would have to point out here that everyone loves music, too.) Read the official county announcement of winners and runners-up, after the jump (including the “exporting” winner, Enprecis, a downtown-based company which we are told has four West Seattleites on its team):

King County Executive Dow Constantine celebrated the importance and the accomplishments of small businesses throughout the county by presenting the second annual King County Executive’s Small Business Awards at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue on Wednesday.

“Every day, small business owners work long hours in a fiercely competitive environment to create value for their customers, provide jobs for their employees, give back to their community, and earn a living for their families,” said Executive Constantine to those in attendance. “That’s why it so important to me that we recognize and support the entrepreneurial spirit, the creativity, and the diversity of small businesses throughout our county.”

At a high-energy, breakfast-hour ceremony, 230 people from local chambers of commerce, cities, and small business organizations watched as winners were announced:

Small Business of the Year
WINNER: Easy Street Records | Seattle
Finalist: Kenmore Camera | Kenmore
Finalist: Trophy Cupcakes and Party | Seattle – Bellevue

Minority Small Business of the Year
WINNER: General Microsystems Inc. | Bellevue
Finalist: Idea Entity Corporation | Bellevue
Finalist: Nesby Associates | Renton

Woman Small Business of the Year
WINNER: Seattle Chocolates | Tukwila
Finalist: Dynamic Language | Seattle
Finalist: Global Resource Group | Bellevue

Exporting Small Business of the Year
WINNER: Enprecis | Seattle
Finalist: Pacific Metallurgical | Kent
Finalist: TransNET Inc. | Issaquah

Green/Sustainable Small Business of the Year
WINNER: MicroEnergy Credits | Seattle
Finalist: Natural and Built Environments | Kirkland
Finalist: Model Remodel | Seattle

Workforce Development Small Business of the Year
WINNER: Kona Kai Coffee Company | Kent
Finalist: Thinkspace | Redmond
Finalist: Thrive | Seattle

Rural Small Business of the Year
WINNER: The Root Connection | Sammamish APD*
Finalist: Jubilee Biodynamic Farm Inc. | Snoqualmie APD*
Finalist: Mosby Farms | Upper Green APD*

*Agriculture Production District