Nanaimo’s Northridge Village Quality Foods’ entry into the Master Merchandiser Awards was the judge’s favourite in the medium store category, winning the gold across Canada.
The store went on to win the Platinum Award as the best in all categories across Canada.
The honour was accepted by the grocery chain’s founding partners John Briuolo and Ken Schley on behalf of manager Randy Romano and his staff at the annual awards dinner Oct. 2 in Toronto.
Kevin Foote, assistant store manager, submitted the winning entry, which featured creative- and customer-focused displays and community involvement.
“A lot of people work very hard to make sure the store is a great place to shop and be a helpful part of our Nanaimo community. To have their work recognized in this way acknowledges that what we do every day makes a difference.”
Several QF Stores have received Master Merchandiser awards in the past, including Nanaimo’s Bowen Road store winning gold in 2011.
“The important thing for us though is that our customers have a great shopping experience each time they come in the store. That’s gold to us. I guess it’s part of our culture in how we do business, and it means a lot to everyone in the stores when the industry takes notice. ”
Eleven Quality Foods stores received an award of merit from judges who visited all applicants across all Canadian provinces and territories, which qualifies a store for further awards.
The Independent Grocer of the Year Awards program is designed to recognize outstanding Canadian Grocers based on a rigorous evaluation performed from the consumer’s perspective. For more information, please visit www.cfig.ca.
