The BII Licensee of the Year competition is widely regarded as the most rigorous and hard-fought award for individual licensee operators in the UK. Since January 2023, operators from across the UK have been whittled down from a field of over 300 entrants, all vying to become the next BII Licensee of the Year winner.
Following a final judging day at Sky Head Quarters on Monday 19th June, where each of the 6 finalists faced 3 panels of industry experts and operators, Joe Buckley & Flo Pearce from the Tollemache Arms in Harrington, were named as the champions!
Joe & Flo had been strong competitors from the start, which saw them score highly across all areas including mystery customer visits and web and social media audits, as well as their on-site judging visit from judges Sue Allen and Ashley McCarthy. Their performance on the final judging day sealed the deal for these fantastic operators who have proved they what it takes to be the best licensees in the UK.
They picked up their winner’s trophy in front of a colleagues and industry friends at this year’s BII Summer Event, hosted on Tuesday 20th June, at the beautiful HAC Royal Artillery Gardens in Moorgate.
Damian Saunders, Managing Director of Sky Business said:
“A huge congratulations to Joe & Flo for winning the Licensee of the Year Award in 2023. Sky Business is delighted to partner with the BII on this award and play a part in recognising the individuals that have achieved so much in the industry, particularly after the incredible challenges they have had to continually face over the past years.”
Steve Alton, Chief Executive of the BII commented:
“I’d like to offer a massive congratulations to Flo & Joe on behalf of myself and the whole team here at the BII, including our fantastic judges. This is the most rigorous and intense competition in our industry, so I would like to also congratulate our other wonderful finalists, as this year the standard was truly remarkable. We can’t wait to share the experience and best practice from all our finalists over the coming year with the whole BII membership.”
The BII would also like to thank everyone who entered this year’s competition. Despite the huge challenges they faced over the past few years in the pandemic and more recently through the energy crisis. Their tenacity and sheer determination for continued excellence has been an inspiration to the whole BII team.
The LOYA competition will return in 2024, launching in January.
ENDS
Notes to the editor:
About the British Institute of Innkeeping:
The BII is the leading independent licensee support organisation for individuals working in hospitality, with over 10,000 individual members running premises across the UK – predominantly tenanted, leased, managed and freehold pubs. The organisation provides expert helplines, online business support, and guidance on key industry issues, and savings on a range of supply deals for its members, keeping pubs thriving in the heart of every community.
For further information please contact:
Molly Davis
Head of Communications
Sentinel House, Ancells Business Park, Harvest Crescent, Fleet, GU51 2UZ
Mob: 07539 377752
Web: www.bii.org
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