Castlederg owner of 'largest SPAR store in the UK' bags prestigious national award in London

Castlederg’s Hamilton’s SPAR has scooped the prestigious Fresh Produce Retailer of the Year award at the annual Retail Industry Awards in London.

Run by Charlie Hamilton and wife Ruth, Hamilton’s SPAR has been in the family since 1995 however was reopened in 2021 after a substantial refurbishment making it the largest SPAR store in the UK.

Charlie attended the gala evening with his daughter Alison to receive the accolade triumphing over fierce competition from across the UK regions.

The awards were judged by an esteemed and experienced panel from across the industry, who said of the Hamilton’s win; “SPAR Castlederg took a four-fold approach to its produce strategy: quality, freshness, range and value. The store is famous for its quality and this has been achieved through its collaboration with suppliers and close communication with the quality assurance team at its wholesaler, Henderson Group. Three daily quality checks help to ensure availability and freshness, while the range is regularly updated to ensure relevance. It is great to see sales of prepared fruit and how displays are being increased throughout the store. The store’s focus on quality and team ownership is clear.”

Paddy Doody, sales and marketing director at Henderson Group, explained: “Once again, our independent retailers have shown how much our region excels.

“Hamilton’s have been a partner with SPAR NI since 1979 and have constantly listened to their shoppers and catered to their changing demands. They are huge advocates of community retailing to do better in communities, and are committed to providing fresh, locally sourced products on the shop floor. They recently teamed up with several of their local suppliers to showcase the best of their producers both in-store and with their local schools, going above and beyond to platform for quality produce available. This award is most thoroughly deserved!”

Hamilton’s were part of a cohort of Spar and Eurospar retailers from Northern Ireland who brought home a total of 11 awards from the ceremony, plus a further eight highly commended accolades.

Henderson Retail, which operates over 100 SPAR and EUROSPAR stores brought home seven awards including Community Retailer of the Year, Forecourt Retailer of the Year and Convenience Retailer of the Year (Regional).

Their company owned stores also received Store Team of the Year (EUROSPAR Doagh), Post Office Retailer of the Year (SPAR Mallusk), Forecourt Retailer of the Year (EUROSPAR Hillcrest, Portrush) and Samuel McCann from SPAR Malone Road took the Store Manager of the Year award for the second year in a row.

Independent stores were also victorious with Londonderry’s Lynch’s EUROSPAR triumphing in both the Tobacco Retailer of the Year award for their Skeoge store, and Chilled Retailer of the Year for their Greysteel store.

And EUROSPAR Creightons of Balmoral in South Belfast won the Independent Retailer of the Year award (3,001 – 6,000 sq. ft.).

Mark McCammond, retail director at Henderson Group, added: “The standard of retailing gets higher every year, and we are incredibly proud to be reaching the standards expected of a world class retailer for our operations in Northern Ireland. Participating in awards like the Retail Industry Awards, which are so respected throughout the trade, give us that extra boost to do better for our staff, our shoppers and our local communities within the stores we operate.

“We are particularly proud of our store awards, with Samuel McCann bringing home Store Manager of the Year for another year, and EUROSPAR Doagh also triumphing with the Store Team of the Year trophy. Not even a year after opening, SPAR Mallusk has also won Post Office Retailer of the Year, which goes to show the level of services under one roof at the flagship store for Henderson Retail.”