A host of businesses ranging from grocery giants Tesco and Asda to delivery specialists DPD and Hermes are among the runners and riders at what will be a new-look ceremony next summer. 

The sector’s frontline heroes, brightest innovations and most successful businesses will be honoured across a host of new categories for 2021, which are designed to shine a spotlight on the people and teams that have gone above and beyond to keep the nation going during the coronavirus crisis.

Eight new frontline hero awards will be given out in total alongside 10 other prizes, including Retail Activist, Leader and the Outstanding Contribution to Retail. 

The winners of all the awards will be revealed at Evolution London in Battersea, on June 3, 2021.   

Retail Week has joined forces with retailTRUST for next year’s event to celebrate and support the sector in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The tie-up will help the industry’s charity raise valuable funds to provide emotional, physical, vocational and financial support to people working in the UK retail sector during one of the most uncertain periods in its history.

All proceeds from the silent auction on the night will be donated to retailTRUST, while attendees will also be able to purchase charity tables, giving £200 per head to the organisation. 

Retail Week Awards 2021 shortlist

Frontline Hero – Head Office Colleague

• Rikesh Lad, Pharmacy Operations Manager, Asda
• Phillipa Gough, Operational Communications Coordinator, B&Q
• George Hayworth, Senior Digital Operations Manager, Co-op
• Amber Coleman, Head of Retail, Heal’s
• Jade Denham, Head of Digital UX and Product, Holland & Barrett
• Kate Oliver, Project Manager, Holland & Barrett
• Matt Kenyon, Instore Experience Manager, Homebase  
• Louise Ortiz de Rozas, Head of Retail, Loaf
• Liz Britton-Jones, Business Continuity Manager, M&S
• Rachel Norton, Supply Chain Analytics Manager, Ocado
• David Laughlin, Logistics Safety Business Partner, Sainsbury’s 

Frontline Hero – Store Team

• Culverhouse Cross, Cardiff  B&Q 
• Piccadilly Circus, London, Boots 
• Waterfoot, Rossendale, Co-op
• Murraygate, Dundee, Holland & Barrett
• Douglas, Isle of Man, M&S
• Drumchapel, Glasgow, Pets at Home
• Argyle Street, Glasgow, River Island
• Stanhope Road, South Shields, Sainsbury’s
• Thirsk, North Yorkshire, Tesco
• Bidford, The Midcounties Co-operative

Frontline Hero – Distribution Centre Colleague

• Ian Creswell, Day Shift Supervisor, AO.com 
• Richard Fielding, General Manager, Asda 
• Hannah Tuck, Customer Services Assistance at Co-op Cardinal Depot, Co-op
• Greg Cessford and Steven Page, The Estee Lauder Companies, UK and Ireland 
• Shaun Dye, Operations Manager, Figleaves 
• Andrew Tilley, IT Business Partner, Distribution Centre, Homebase 
• Gemma Normansell, Facilities Manager, M&S
• Rebecca McGurrell, Personal Shopper, Ocado 
• Craig Maguire, Distribution Centre Manager, Pets at Home 
• Nathan Seaburn, Senior Operations Manager, The Very Group  
• Daniel Lock, Team Manager, Yodel 

Frontline Hero – Initiative

• Supporting Wellbeing Through Gardening, B&Q
• Supports UK Government with the launch of Covid-19 drive-through testing facilities, Boots 
• Hand Sanitiser Initiative, BrewDog
• Supplying protective equipment for hospitals, H&M Group
• Flexible Online Fulfilment, Holland & Barrett
• Supporting NHS frontline heroes during Covid-19, Made.com
• Morrisons Food Boxes, Morrisons 
• Power Of Us, Primark
• Home Delivery Service, The Midcounties Co-operative
• Sanitiser Production, Wax Lyrical

The Customer Experience Award

• Retail is not dead, boring retail is!, Adidas LDN
• ShopLive virtual shopping experience, Dixons Carphone 
• Get Britain Making, Hobbycraft
• Store of the Future – Chelmsford, Holland & Barrett
• John Lewis’s Virtual Britain, John Lewis Partnership 
• Lever Direct 
• Never Underestimate the Power of Community, Mamas & Papas  
• Doorstep Deliveries, Morrisons  
• YourPret Barista, Pret a Manger 
• Wellness range launch, Primark

Best Place to Work 

• Amazon
• Beaverbrooks
• Card Factory
• Harry’s Grooming
• Hobbycraft 
• Pavers
• Pets at Home
• Tesco
• The Body Shop

The Best Retailer Over £250m

• B&Q
• The Co-op
• H&M Group
• Iceland Foods 
• Pets at Home
• Studio.co.uk
• Tesco
• The Hut Group
• The Very Group