What's On

STOCKTON INDEPENDENT and national businesses were celebrated at the Wellington Square Retailer Awards.

The inaugural awards ceremony, held at ARC, rewarded hardworking tenants and gave them a night to remember.

The stylish ceremony was jam-packed with over 100 guests, a lively quiz and plenty of cheers as the winners of seven categories took to the stage to accept their awards.

Winner of Retailer of the Year, Charlene Gibbs, Manager of River Island, said: “We were elated to receive a Retailer of the Year as we were up against some very stiff competition.

“We are proudly displaying our trophy in store and showing it off to all our customers!”

Claire Marley, Manager at Bluecorn Bakery who won the ‘Friendliest Staff’ and ‘Shoppers Award’ said: “Everyone is extremely happy with the awards and we loved the event, it was a brilliant way to bring all the shops together to celebrate everything that is great about Wellington Square.

“It’s also fantastic that the awards give independent stores a chance to shine and compete with the large, national chains.”

Mystery shop certificates were also awarded to those who achieved 100%, the winners included Elizabeths, Warren James and Specsavers.

Centre Manager, Matt Boxall, said: “This was the first Wellington Square Retailer Awards and we were delighted to celebrate our amazing businesses and their teams.

“The voting and mystery shops were extremely close across all categories this year which is testament to the high quality of retailers in the centre.

“From the smallest local independent to the largest nationals, everybody works tirelessly each day to deliver the best customer service and shopping experience for visitors at Wellington Square – they are all winners in our eyes.”

Voted by Wellington Square Management, all tenants and Wellington Square shoppers, the winners were as follows:-

Shoppers Award – Bluecorn Bakery
Friendliest Staff – Bluecorn Bakery
Best Independent – Katie’s Kards
Best National – Caffe Nero
Unsung Hero – Sophie Proud at Stockton-on-Tees Employment Hub
Outstanding Achievement Award – Claire Hardy
Retailer of the Year – River Island

100% Mystery Shop – CEX, Elizabeths, Faking It, Hays Travel, Sallys, Specsavers and Warren James.