For over a decade, NACS has hosted the NACS Convenience Retail Awards Europe to recognize outstanding achievements in the European retail markets. This year’s winners were announced during the NACS Convenience Summit Europe in Barcelona, Spain, June 4-6.
The awards provide one of the highest benchmarks of global convenience retailing excellence in four categories: retailer of the year, industry leader of the year, sustainability, and technology. Here are the 2024 recipients:
SuperValu Portstewart, part of the Musgrave Group, won the NACS European Convenience Retailer of the Year Award. This store was the first in Northern Ireland where Musgrave launched “SuperValu Rejuvenation” in August 2022. The concept was developed to redefine convenience retail related to store design, product selection, technology, customer service and branding elements.
With an investment of £1.1 million, SuperValu Portstewart was physically reimagined into a bright, airy, and modern space with wide linear aisles offering easier navigation for shoppers. The store also showcases a re-invention of the brand, most notably around a transformed food experience. The award was sponsored by Dover Fueling Solutions.
BWG Foods, part of the BWG Group in Dublin, Ireland, won the NACS European Convenience Retail Sustainability Award. Through the company’s work with Anglo Irish Refrigeration and Wirth Research, BWG Foods designed, created and implemented two energy efficient solutions: First, Next Generation Refrigeration uses airflow movements to enhance the cooler’s energy efficiency, and second, Climate Flow repurposes cold air to cool the store during the summer, and utilizes hot air to heat the store during the winter. The award was sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company.
Germany-based Q1 Shop & Go won the NACS European Convenience Retail Technology Award. Q1 Energie AG, which operates over 230 petrol stations and more than 50 electric vehicle charging stations throughout Germany, is testing a new form of convenience with its Q1 Shop & Go, a fully autonomous store located in the Science Park in Osnabrück.
Q1 Shop & Go is an AI-based smart store designed make quick and easy errands possible. It is open 24/7 and product selection includes in-between meals and groceries, fresh snacks/sandwiches such as wraps and salads, as well as chilled drinks and a coffee-to-go range. The store does not have employees onsite. The award was sponsored by Gilbarco Veeder-Root.
NACS previously announced Brian Donaldson, CEO of Ireland-based Maxol, as the winner of the NACS European Convenience Industry Leader Award. “Brian has done an amazing job of transforming the company from one that is fuel based to one that is food based. As the industry continues to along this path, this is a model to both study and celebrate,” said NACS President and CEO Henry Armour.
The NACS Convenience Summit Europe takes place each year in a different European city. The event features Ideas 2 Go store tours of host-city convenience retail formats, as well as two days of general sessions and the Convenience Retail Awards Europe gala. Look for exclusive event coverage in NACS Daily and in the August issue of NACS Magazine.