The UK’s largest pub company, Ei Group has opened entries today for its annual Ei Group Awards for Excellence, which celebrate the very best operators from across its business.
Building momentum from the success of last year’s inaugural awards, which saw Adrian Emmett of The Lion in Treorchy (pictured centre) take home the coveted Pub of the Year award, this year’s event continues to shine a light on the outstanding publicans in its estate, those pubs at the heart of their local communities who demonstrate operational excellence across the company.
This year’s gala awards ceremony, which will be held at the Old Thorns Hotel in Hampshire on 2 July, includes a number of new categories, along with a judging panel of pub specialists, and industry expert Phil Dixon.
Paul Harbottle, Group Commercial Director at Ei Group, said: “We have been delighted with the success of our new awards programme which provides us with an opportunity to highlight the amazing work of so many publicans across our estate. In celebrating their success, we are inspiring others and working towards our goal of raising retail standards and business performance.
“We are excited to see this year’s entries and I’m sure we’ll uncover some truly inspirational stories from publicans who are proving the pub is still at the very heart of communities across the UK. We look forward to celebrating with our publicans at the awards night next summer with some bigger prizes and even better results.”
Phil Dixon will be tasked with scrutinising the finalists through site visits and publican interviews, to determine the overall winner across nine out of 12 categories, including Best Community Hub, Best Sports Venue, Best Multiple Operator and Best Newcomer.
Three specialist categories will face a separate judging process, with shortlisted pubs in the Best Food category being judged by a mystery shopper, while, experts from Wadworth Brewery, will assess shortlisted pubs for the Cellar Standards award.
The Lifetime Achievement Award will be chosen by Ei Group CEO, Simon Townsend.
There will also be three additional awards for Best Craft Union Pub Company Operator, Best Bermondsey Pub Company Operator and Best Time Out Award for an Ei Managed Investments partner.
This year’s categories are:
Cellar Standards
Best Community Hub
Best Sports Venue
Best Food Offer
Best Drink Offer
Best Turnaround
Best Entertainment
Best Multiple Operator
Best Marketing Initiative
Best Newcomer
Best Outdoor Area
Lifetime Achievement Award
Best Craft Union Pub Company Operator
Best Bermondsey Pub Company Operator
Best Time Out Award for an Ei Managed Investments partner
Ei Group Pub of the Year
Publicans can enter the awards via the dedicated website (www.eigroupawards.com) or by nomination from their Regional Manager.