The British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) is delighted to announce their 12 Semi-Finalists for this year’s Licensee of the Year competition.

In partnership with Sky Business, the Licensee of the Year competition is widely regarded as the most rigorous and hard-fought award for individual licensee operators in the UK. 

Since the launch in January this year, licensee operators have been entering the competition, showing the judges evidence of how they have been building their businesses and communities, with a focus on their resilience, sustainability, diversification and commitment to their teams. 

This year, the entries and Quarter-Finalists have been of a particularly high standard, making it even more difficult for the team of judges to decide who made the Semi-Finals.

Selected from a field of over 300 entrants, the 12 Semi-Finalists have reached this far in the awards based on their exceptional entry forms, social media and web presence audits as well as mystery customer visits, courtesy of HGEM. Head Judges, Amanda Hemming FBII and Ashley McCarthy CBII, will be making their way across the country over the next few weeks to meet all of the Semi-Finalists in person to experience their businesses first hand. 

The 2024 Licensee of the Year Semi-Finalists are as follows: 
Andrew Goodall – Rose & Crown, Severnstoke – WR8 9JQ 
Benjamin Bullman – The George IV – W4 2DR
Chris Michaelas – The Dartford Sports Bar – DA1 2DJ
Emma Harrison – The Three Hills – CB21 4PW
Harry Seccombe & Nicholas Humphrey – Chaplin’s & The Cellar Bar – BH1 4AG
Helen Paterson – The Cherry Tree – ML2 0BP
Justine Lorriman – The Royal Dyche – BB11 3BW
Max Shaw & Kelly Deary – The Castle Inn – DE74 2PP
Paul Dexter – The Old Swan – NN6 0NA
Sarah Godwin – The Lamb Inn – BS26 2AP
Steve Banks – The Woodman, Ruislip – HA4 7SE
Victoria Williams & Zac Williams-Wolfe – Fletchers Arms – M34 6EG


Steven Alton, BII CEO commented: 
"Our Licensee of the Year Award is the most prestigious & hard-fought award, showing the excellence in our sector; our Semi-Finalists are of a fantastic standard.

“We are proud that the awards process this year, more than ever, is offering a value-added experience to all those involved with business insight and the chance to evaluate your business available at every stage. In addition to the mystery customer visits, facilitated once again by HGEM, we have this year been supported by useyourlocal who have been promoting our entrants to consumers across the whole of the UK. With Cask Marque auditing cellars in addition to the visits from our Head Judges, Amanda and Ashley, the competition this year will provide more value to contestants than ever before."
 
Following the judging visits, the finalists will be announced in mid-May.

All six finalists will be presented with a trophy at the BII Summer Event on 18th June, where the overall winner of Licensee of the Year 2024 will be crowned.

To learn more about the LOYA Semi-Finalists, see here.

If you would like tickets to the event of the summer to see the best operators in the UK being recognised and network with 900 industry friends and colleagues, you can view our Summer Event page here

 

The BII would like to thank everyone who has entered the competition this year. Keep your eyes peeled for another opportunity to enter in January 2025.

After the incredible success of the debut Pedalling 2 Pubs ride in 2023,  the epic industry bike ride and sibling fundraiser to Pedalling for Pubs, is returning for another year, having raised over £25k so far for two vital industry charities; Only A Pavement Away and the Licensed Trade Charity. This year’s Pedalling 2 Pubs team will set off in just over a month, with 50 hospitality professionals cycling 230km across the rolling hills of North Devon from the 16th – 18th May 2024, all for a fantastic cause.

Pedalling 2 Pubs launched last year, with riders tackling the Yorkshire Wolds and raising an incredible £80k. 

 

This year’s UK ride follows the incredible effort of the Pedalling for Pubs team, which saw 30 riders from across the hospitality sector take on the mammoth 400km cycle across rugged terrain in Kenya, from Nairobi to the Masai 
Mara last month. 

Through the united effort of Pedalling for Pubs and Pedalling 2 Pubs, organisers have set the impressive target of raising over £350k for the two charities this year. Adding to an astounding £670k already raised in the first 2 years since the challenge was founded in 2022. 

Commenting on this year’s Pedalling 2 Pubs, Steve Alton, Lead Rider and CEO at the BII said “Alongside the fantastic and incredibly tough challenge recently undertaken in Kenya, organised and led by the inimitable Katy Moses, I am delighted to be leading the UK edition of this fantastic charity initiative. We have 50 fantastic fundraisers signed up to cycle over 230km across North Devon in May, with some tough climbing of over 3,300m which is higher than the 3 peaks combined! All of the riders are passionate about the life changing impact of the two critical sector charities that we are raising vital funds for, as well as being able to refuel and recover at some great British pubs along the way.”

Chris Welham, CEO of the Licensed Trade Charity added “It’s brilliant to be involved in this year’s Pedalling 2 Pubs ride. It’s an initiative that’s great at bringing the industry together and is so effective at raising vital funds and awareness for the Licensed Trade Charity, both of which are critical in enabling us to help even more people across our industry that need it most. Good luck to my fellow riders and thank you to all who have already donated.” 

Greg Mangham, Founder and CEO of Only A Pavement Away said “I’m beyond grateful for all those who are taking part in this year’s Pedalling 2 Pubs, and to those who have donated so far. Both these rides really are a testament to how our industry comes together year on year to help those who need it most. The funds Only A Pavement receives from this campaign enables us to reach more people facing homelessness and provide them with a pathway into a stable career in hospitality. It really does change lives, so thank you to all our riders, sponsors and supporters.”
  
To find out more about the challenge or to donate, please follow this link: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/pedalling2pubs2024