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Kuits NRB Top Fifty Awards
For the ninth year, the Kuits NRB Top Fifty will be the power list of the most significant and influential hospitality operators in the North. Long established names and nine new entries made up the 2019 list covering 212 brands, 1527 sites and over 22,840 employees. The 2020 awards will once again represent this charismatic and dynamic industry when announced on 17 March.
The Top Fifty will be invited to a private reception at Northern Restaurant & Bar 2020 to celebrate their inclusion in the powerlist. The special achievement winners will also be announced at the awards reception.
Thom Hetherington, CEO of organisers Holden Media, said “It’s been another strong year for the North’s leading operators, driving the industry forward with a balance of expansion, innovation and consolidation. Recent data from CGA show that the restaurant and bar scene in the major Northern cities is far outperforming London, and I think that a combination of lower costs and a better lifestyle mean more and more operators are choosing to build their businesses in the North.”
2019 Winners
Special Achievement Winner John Gyngell (pictured) & Christian Townsley, North Brew Co
Special Achievement Winner Chris Hill, New World Trading Company
Special Achievement Winner Nisha Katona, Mowgli Street Food
Sponsored by Kuits Solicitors
Kuits is a specialist legal and commercial adviser to the leisure and hospitality industry, working with hundreds of bars, restaurants, health clubs, theatres, cinemas, hotels, and food and beverage businesses across the UK.
Ranked the No.1 law firm in the North West for the licensed trade by Legal 500 and winner of Best Law Firm at the Talk of Manchester Awards 2017, Kuits provides operators with specialist advice on everything from their leases and licensing applications to their employees and brand management.
Kuits is working with national brands such as Revolution, Brewdog, Turtle Bay, The Alchemist and The New World Trading Company, as well as exciting indie operators such as Bundobust, North Brewing Co and Gary Usher, to help their businesses grow and flourish.
Judging Notes
The NRB Top Fifty exists to recognise the most significant hospitality operators in the North of England. We look for individuals who are driving their businesses to sector-leading levels of commercial and critical success, who show consistency as well as evolution and innovation and who make a contribution to the industry and the region in terms of skills, training, ambassadorial work and general CSR.
The NRB Top Fifty can be chef patrons running world-class kitchens, or captains of industry building extensive multi-brand casual dining portfolios, but they must be inspirational standard bearers for the Northern hospitality industry.
The awards are judged by a panel of leading hospitality experts who span the fields of law, finance, property, insurance, marketing and business consultancy at some of the world’s biggest food and drink operations. They are all Northern-based and know the region intimately.
After the initial round of applications and nominations there is a rigorous paper-based research and assessment process collating hundreds of pages of information about potential inclusions. Following this there is an in-depth judging discussion and, where necessary, additional peer/industry interviews are carried out. We are grateful to CGA for their additional insight at this point.
Following this exhaustive process a definitive fifty is selected and balanced to ensure there is no bias in terms of industry sector or geography. A final round of discussion then takes place to select the three Special Achievement Award winners who the judges feel have achieved something truly exceptional within the preceding twelve months.
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