Altrincham town centre businesses turned out in force last night to recognise the achievements of businesses from a range of sectors at the first Altrincham Unlimited BID Awards.
Hosted by BBC North West presenter Beccy Barr, the awards took place at the Cresta Court Hotel with winners and runners up across nine categories selected based on the results of a month-long ‘mystery shopper’ exercise.
During May, all 71 participating businesses had been visited or contacted in person by researchers from industry experts Storecheckers.
Businesses were judged on judged on a range of factors, including venue appearance, products and pricing, website, service, sales and local knowledge.
Overall Altrincham as a town performed extremely well, with businesses receiving an average score of 85.5%, putting Altrincham in the ‘premier league’ of towns and cities visited by Storecheckers, alongside Cambridge and Manchester city centre.
Katie Bland, BID Manager for Altrincham Unlimited, said: “We’re delighted to see that Altrincham as a town has performed extremely well, with both independent businesses and high street names doing themselves proud – and eight businesses scoring a perfect 100% – an amazing achievement on such a wide-ranging assessment. We would like to thank all the businesses that took part, and hope the findings prove informative and useful.”
Jeff Caplan, managing director of Storecheckers, said: “Being near to where we live and work, Altrincham is close to our hearts, so it is fantastic to see that not only has the BID area been going through a period of evident regeneration, but also that businesses are stepping up to the plate by delivering high standards and acting as ambassadors for the whole town.”
The winners and runners-up in each category were as follows:
Best Pub/ Bar
Winner: The Cheshire Tap
Runners-up: Riddles, The Cellar
Best Restaurant
Winner: Sugo
Runners-up: Bistrot Pierre, Cholaas
Best Café
Winner: Velo Espresso
Runners-up: Eat:kaizen, Burrito Picante
Best Beauty/ Well-being service
Winner: Runway Pilates (100% score)
Runners-up: Toni & Guy, Shop4Supplements
Best Professional Service
Winner: Jameson & Partners (100% score)
Runners-up: Tax Assist (100% score), RMS PR (100% score)
Best Independent Retailer – Fashion/Jewellery/Home Interiors
Winner: Randalls Jewellery (100% score)
Runners-up: Diadem Jewellery (100% score), Wells & Hewitt
Best Specialist Retailer
Winner: Amplifon (100% score)
Runners-up: Dawsons, Riddles Emporium
Best Multiple Retailer
Winner: Monsoon
Runners-up: House of Fraser, Barclays
Best Leisure/ Tourism Service
Winner: Cresta World Travel (100% score)
Runners-up: Art with a Heart, Licensed Black Cabs
