Leading IGA stores are celebrating after winning awards at the annual Independent Grocers of Australia (IGA) Retailer of the Year Awards held on the Gold Coast on the 20 July 2015.
The awards, hosted by actor and comedian Shane Jacobson, recognised the efforts of the stores and their staff in the community, and placed the winning stores as the benchmark for other IGA supermarkets across Australia.
The national awards were judged on a range of criteria including what the store is famous for, customer service, community pride, sales, profits, merchandising and the store’s overall performance.
The awards were presented to the store teams by Russell Parker, GM, Retail Network, and Ben Ryan, National Council Chairman, IGA.
Ryan said the National Retailer of the Year Awards was considered a great honour amongst the IGA group, with competition becoming stronger each year.
“The IGA National Retailer of the Year Awards acknowledge the hard work, commitment and excellence our stores have demonstrated all year.
“All of our winners have done an incredible job and this award is testament to their excellence on so many levels. In recognising these individuals, we acknowledge the true essence of independent retailing and what it really means to be an IGA retailer,” he concluded.
Twenty four category awards were awarded, including IGA Retailer of the Year (Ritchies IGA Mt Eliza -VIC); SUPA IGA/Foodland and IGA National Retailer of the Year (Frewville Foodland IGA-SA); and IGA X-press Retailer of the Year (IGA X-press Lauderdale -TAS).
The Retailer of the Year Awards take place each year at a gala dinner during the Metcash Food and Grocery Expo on the Gold Coast to celebrate success across IGA’s network of 1,400 stores.
