BII Licensee of the Year Award 2025 Winner:Mike Dove and Tommy Higgs – The Three Horseshoes, Witney

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 2025, operators from across the UK have been whittled down from a field of over 500 nominations, all vying to become the next BII Licensee of the Year winner.

Following a final judging day at Sky Head Quarters on Monday 16th June, where each of the six finalists faced three panels of industry experts and operators, Tommy Higgs and Mike Dove from The Three Horseshoes in Witney, were named as the champions!

Excelling across all areas of the competition, they faced incredibly tough competition from the five other finalists, from a diverse range of business models and experience, with their performance on the final judging day seeing them take the top spot.

Tommy and Mike were crowned winners in front of a crowd of 900 colleagues and industry friends at this year’s BII Summer Event, hosted on Tuesday 17th June, at the beautiful HAC Royal Artillery Gardens in Moorgate. The event was also livestreamed for the first time, allowing the finalists’ pubs to join the event online to cheer them on.

Having taken on their pub just 2 years ago, these best friends, who have been dreaming of owning and running their own venue for a decade, secured the top spot, giving an emotional and heartfelt winner’s speech.

Steve Alton, Chief Executive of the BII commented:

“I’d like to offer a massive congratulations to Mike and Tommy 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 on this incredible achievement.  

“Tommy and Mike have proved themselves to be true innovators, taking a traditional country pub and making it into a truly special space for every area of the community. Their leadership and team focus as well as their infectious positivity won them the award on the day.

“The BII would also like to thank everyone who entered this year’s competition. Despite the huge challenges they continue to face, their tenacity and sheer determination for continued excellence has been an inspiration to the whole BII team.

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 13,000 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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