Winners Testimonials 2026

See what some of our 2026 winners had to say about The Grocer Gold Awards below.

“Winning a Grocer Gold award for the sixth time is a huge achievement for our SPAR and EUROSPAR chain of stores in Northern Ireland.. We have an ambition to be a ‘world class community focussed food retailer’ and winning Independent Retail Chain of the year reinforces our conviction in believing we can achieve our goal. I’m so proud of our colleagues throughout Hendersons and wish to thank them for their commitment and loyalty. We are very appreciative of the recognition from The Grocer and wish to acknowledge the organisers for delivering a spectacular event."

Mark McCammond Managing Director Henderson Retail

"Winning a Grocer Gold Award is a huge honour for everyone at Drylock Technologies. For a company that is usually hidden behind the Retail Brands, it is a fantastic feeling for all involved to get recognition for the passion, innovation and dedication that our teams are bringing to the industry and our retailer partners. The award celebrates our growth, our product quality and our strategy, along with the collaborative relationships we've built with our customers. Knowing that this is judged by experts in the industry gives the stamp of approval that we are doing a stand-out job, against other outstanding businesses in our industry. It was a wonderful evening, great food, great entertainment, well executed and a great buzz all around the Great Albert Hall. We will be celebrating this one for a long time!"

Lucy Andrews Sales Director UK & Ireland Drylock Technologies Ltd.

“Cotswold Fayre has won many awards over the past few years but has always considered a Grocer Gold Award to be the ultimate accolade for the company. We were absolutely delighted to win ‘Speciality Wholesaler of the Year’ for the second time this year because we consider these to be the ‘Oscars’ of the FMCG world, because they are judging by industry experts, who know only too well the challenges of the sector. It was particularly pleasing to have our company culture and sustainability ethos mentioned in the judge’s comments as these are the heartbeat of our company. If you have thought about entering, but haven’t got round to it, I would strongly encourage you to enter in 2027.”

Paul Hargreaves Chief Empowerment Officer Cotswold Fayre

"Winning an award is always special, but winning a Grocer Gold Award is something else entirely. This award is one of the most respected marks of excellence in grocery and wholesale, and it reinforces the credibility, quality and innovative approach that we aim for, every day. We will wear the badge with pride across our delivery fleet, marketing materials and website. We're incredibly proud of what this recognition represents – not just for the business, but for the people behind it."

Kaan Hendekli Chief Operating Officer JJ Foodservice

"We were thrilled to win the Consumer Initiative of the Year award for the exclusive launch of the My Waitrose loyalty scheme. It was incredibly rewarding to see such strong interest from across the industry in what we built together with Waitrose, with the recognition reinforcing the impact of our partnership and the value of bringing innovative loyalty experiences to customers."

Katie Hunter General Manager Uber