The industry’s toughest competition came to a dramatic close today with David Hage and Mark Osborne from The Railway at Lowdham, beating the five other finalists to the top spot and winning Licensee of the Year 2019 - sponsored by Sky.
Hage and Osborne fought through the previous three rounds of the competition to wow the judges at the final judging day on 3 June, where they displayed excellent knowledge and experience in three different areas; Business Development, People and Training and Financial Awareness.
The business partners picked up the trophy in front of a packed audience at the BII Summer event at the HAC in the City of London today, attended by the brightest and best from the industry.
David Rey, Managing Director of Sky Business, said, “A huge congratulations to David and Mark for winning the Licensee of the Year Award. Sky is delighted to sponsor this award and play a part in recognising the individuals that have achieved so much in the industry.”
Mike Clist, Chief Executive of the BII commented, “I’d like to offer a massive congratulations to Mark and David and the whole team at The Railway on behalf of myself and everyone here at the BII.
'This is a tough competition to win, but it was clear to the judges that they had the dedication and passion deserving of a Licensee of the Year winner. I’d also like to congratulate our other finalists for getting this far and being such fantastic candidates- it really was a tough decision as they all brought something unique to the competition!”
As winner of Licensee of the Year competition Mark and David will receive a year’s free Pubs and Clubs subscription to Sky Sports, VIP tickets to the Great British Pub Awards in September as guests of Sky and £500 towards a party in their pub to celebrate with their staff.