The Applegreen forecourt outlet in Mount Merrion, Stillorgan, has won the National Retail Store of the Year at the Retail Excellence Ireland Awards 2013. The Dublin-based store also took home the Manager of the Year Award for manager Keith Ennis. The retailer is the first forecourt operator to ever win a Store of the Year Award.
David Fitzsimons, CEO, Retail Excellence Ireland said, “Applegreen are so deserving of these awards. The Mount Merrion store is simply first class. It exudes innovation and intelligent retail execution. Everything about the store is customer facing including the design, category presentation, ranging and most importantly the impeccable service standards." He further added, "It is no coincidence that Keith won the Manager of the Year Award. He is incredibly dedicated and professional and a credit to our industry."
Other winners included Joyces Supermarket Knocknacarra for Store of the Year (greater than 10,000 sq ft), Donnellan & Co, Roscommon for Store of the Year (5,000-10,000 sq ft) and Vodafone, Dundrum Town centre, Dublin for Store of the Year (less than 1,000 sq ft). The National Company of the Year & Best Employer went to McDonalds, while National Website of the Year went to www.53degreesnorth.ie. The Company of the year Award was won by Eason, while the Rising Star of the Year was awarded to Catriona Flynn from McCabes Pharmacy in Citywest Shopping Centre, Dublin.
Mr. Fitzsimons said to the winners, "I want to commend all of the retailers who entered this year’s awards. I particularly congratulate the awards finalists and winners. The highest standard of service, customer engagement, display and levels of investment amongst Irish retailers made choosing this year’s winners particularly difficult. These awards are about recognising and applauding excellence. In a market with very selective consumers, recognition as an industry leader will be of significant value."
The awards, presented in association with Barclaycard, were presented last Saturday November 2, and were attended by more than 500 representatives of the retail industry in Ireland. The awards are the biggest event in the Irish retail industry calendar. This is the 16th year of the industry awards, which command over 600 entries annually.
© 2013 - Checkout Magazine by Genna Patterson
