The Retailer’s Retailer of the Year Awards- www.rroty.co.uk- take their name because they identify retailing excellence in the eating and drinking out market.

Market positioning, attention to detail and flawless execution are the hallmarks of the past and present winners.

Organised by M&C Report, these awards are highly credible - and really matter - because they are voted for by senior people from the marketplace. They are the only industry awards, voted for by the industry itself.

The 2008 Retailers’ Retailer of the Year

Winners

Best Individual
Graham Turner

Emerging Concept
Le Pain Quotidien

Best Concept
Gaucho Grill

Best Company
Wagamama

Best Venue
Alma De Cuba

Deal of the Year
Tragus

Investor of the Year
Richard Caring

Revitalised Brand
McDonalds’s

Rising Star
Patrick Clayton-Malone & Dominic Lake ~ Canteen

 

Graham Turner, the chief executive of Tragus Holdings, has been singled out as the eating and drinking-out market’s top operator for 2008.

Turner, described as “an inspirational manager and a great dealmaker”, and also as “one of the sector’s true value creators”, was named best individual at the Retailers’ Retailer of the Year.

Turner emerged as the winner of the Best Individual prize from an illustrious group of individuals, comprising Rooney Anand of Greene King, John Hutson of JD Wetherspoon, Simon Kossoff of Carluccio’s, Julian Metcalf of Pret A Manger, and Ian Neill of Wagamama.

The prize was one of two presented to Turner at a prestigious ceremony at the Dorchester Hotel on London’s Park Lane on March 5, 2008.

Tragus, which operates Café Rouge and is backed by Blackstone, also collected best deal for its £140m acquisition of Strada. The vendor in that particular transaction, entrepreneur Richard Caring, was named investor of the year.

Wagamama, the international noodle-bar chain, was named best company, Le Pain Quotidien was identified as the emerging brand of the year, and Gaucho Grill collected best concept. McDonald’s won the revitalised brand category,

The Rising Star category was awarded to two of the entrepreneurs behind the fledgling British food concept Canteen - Patrick Clayton-Malone and Dominic Lake.

In their 10th year, the awards attracted a record number of people voting, with hundreds of senior individuals having their say.