Northern Ireland grocer and retailer receives UK accolade for workforce development

Northern Ireland grocer and retailer, Henderson Group has been recognised at the British Chambers of Commerce annual Chamber Business Awards 2023 for its workplace strategies and development.

The group, which includes Spar, Eurospar, Vivo, Vivoxtra and Vivo Essentials brands, won this year’s Workforce Developer Award at the annual ceremony, which highlights the role of firms in delivering growth and prosperity for the UK and local communities.

The Workforce Developer Award recognises the work of a business that has demonstrated how their approach to the learning and development of their team has enhanced their business performance.

The win comes as Henderson Wholesale, one of the companies operating within the group, has achieved Gold Investors in People accreditation, joining Henderson Foodservice and Henderson Retail with the Gold standard.

Henderson Group employs over 5,200 colleagues locally throughout its companies and stores, with Henderson Wholesale employing around 830 within its Mallusk Hub, from warehouse and logistics to sales and marketing.

Henderson Group human resources director Sam Davidson says these recent honours are a reflection of the hard work and focus across the group and its companies in recent years.

He explained: “Learning and development is at the heart of our people strategy, which focuses on four core themes – Keep Me Well, Keep Me Engaged, Keep Me Involved and Keep Me Inspired.

“Our success is down to our people who are engaged with a solution-focused approach, working with our core business purposes in mind and working together to achieve them.

“We have invested even further in our growth opportunities for our people, alongside wellbeing initiatives which run through all levels of the company. We are extremely proud of our workforce and the services they deliver for our retailers and shoppers, and are thrilled to now have three of four of our companies reach the Gold Investors in People standard of accreditation alongside this recognition from the British Chambers of Commerce.”

Paul Devoy, chief executive officer of Investors in People, continued: “We’d like to congratulate Henderson Wholesale. Gold accreditation on ‘We Invest in People’ is a fantastic effort for any organisation, and places Henderson Wholesale in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people.”

Sarah Howard, chair of the British Chambers of Commerce added: “Henderson Group stood out as they were able to show how workforce development benefits the growth of the overall company. They demonstrated a very clear link between workplace development and the resultant increase in revenue and profit. Delivering this training through their own Academy clearly has benefits and incentives for both the employer and employees. They have done a fabulous job all round.”