Henderson retailers from across Northern Ireland have racked up over 20 awards in just three nights at some of the most prestigious national retail awards ceremonies across the UK and Ireland.

At the Forecourt Trader Awards, Retail Industry Awards and Ireland’s Forecourt & Convenience Retailer Awards in the past week, SPAR NI stores and EUROSPAR NI supermarkets have brought home 24 gongs for excellence in fresh produce, independent, community and company-operated retailing, as well as nods towards their food-to-go offering.

Fresh Food sales have grown 10% in the past year, and the Group has posted a turnover of £853 million for 2018. 19 new stores and supermarkets opened their doors in 2018/19 to provide everyday essentials for their local communities creating around 500 local jobs, and the Group recently announced a £26m investment in a further 20 stores in the next 12 months.

The judges were impressed with these results, and Sales & Marketing Director Paddy Doody says they’ll continue to drive investment to ensure Henderson’s retail brands are at the forefront of convenience in Northern Ireland.

Paddy commented; “Our senior team commit millions of pounds in re-investment back in to the business each year, which contributes to our sustained growth and earns us the recognition of our peers. As a local business, Henderson Group stands out nationally, and being part of the SPAR International family enables our retailers to learn from each other around the world giving us a huge competitive edge here.”

At the Retail Industry Awards in London, often regarded as a benchmark of excellence in the retail industry, SPAR and EUROSPAR store managers dominated in the Store Manager of the Year category, taking away the winner for Independent (Thomas Magennis, Mulkerns’ EUROSPAR, Newry) and Multiple (Joanne Walker, EUROSPAR Donegall Road, Belfast) while Jennifer Donaghy (SPAR Holywood Road, Belfast) brought home the highly commended. Store Team of the Year was taken home by the VIVO Essential’s store, Mountjoy Filling Station in Omagh.

Meanwhile, at the Forecourt Trader Awards also in London, Samuel McCann (EUROSPAR Carrick Milestone, Carrickfergus) was awarded the Best Site Manager Accolade, and two of Henderson Retail’s newest stores and supermarkets, SPAR Fortfield and EUROSPAR Wallace Village won regional Forecourt of the Year titles.

And at Ireland’s Forecourt & Convenience Retail Awards in Dublin, Mulkerns’ EUROSPAR won Best Use of Category Management, Creighton’s of Balmoral won Forecourt & Convenience Store of the Year and Henderson Retail won Best Training Initiative.

Mark McCammond, Retail Director at the Henderson Group added; “We have many of the best retail managers and most highly committed store teams trading from well invested, contemporary retail outlets. They share our vision for success, which is why we have seen an uplift in retailers joining Hendersons to boost their sales and margins and put their name behind a brand they can be proud of.”

Henderson’s retailers will also benefit from the state-of-the-art £15 million warehouse facility, currently being built which will future proof the business for storage for the next 20 years.

Paddy Doody concluded; “Efficiency in storage and logistics helps us to keep prices lower in our stores, which make for happier retailers and shoppers. We’re very proud of our achievements over the past year, and the recent award wins are the icing on the cake.”

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