Drake & Morgan, the fledgling bar-restaurant concept, founded by Jillian MacLean, has collected two titles at this year’s Retailers’ Retailer of the Year Awards.
MacLean was identified as the eating-out and drinking-out market’s Rising Star by M&C Report, in consultation with senior figures from the market, while the group’s launch site – the Refinery near London’s Tate Modern – was named Best Venue.
The daughter of Scottish hoteliers, MacLean spent 15 years at Mitchells & Butlers, had spells with Spirit Group and Tattershall before spending three years with Novus Leisure.
She and business partner John Connell founded the Drake & Morgan concept just under two years ago when the Refinery, situated in the Blue Fin development at London’s Bankside, opened its doors. The group has since added a second site at Canary Wharf called the Parlour and will next month unveil the Anthropologist in London’s Gresham Street. It hopes to add a fourth site before the end of the year.
Other awards
McDonald's UK chief executive Steve Easterbrook, the man who has led the turnaround of McDonald’s in the UK, was singled out by his industry peers as the Best Individual in the eating-out and drinking-out market at the awards at The Dorchester last night.
He emerged from an assorted shortlist of eminent business leaders from the eating and drinking-out market, narrowly beating: Rupert Clevely, managing director, Geronimo Inns; John Derkach, managing director, Costa Coffee; John Hutson, chief executive, JD Wetherspoon; Philippe Le Roux, chief executive of Le Pain Quotidien UK; and Julian Metcalfe, founder, Pret A Manger.
Easterbrook’s prize was the first of two awards for McDonald’s. The world’s largest purveyor of burgers also collected the Evolution Award, recognising the work undertaken to re-position the brand’s UK business and to re-engage with consumers.
Jamie’s Italian, the 10-strong casual dining chain spearheaded by Jamie Oliver and based on the chef’s love of simple but well-executed Italian food, was named Best Concept. Oliver was also named Investor of the Year.
Pret A Manger, the high street coffee and sandwich operator, was named Best Company for the third time, having won the prize in 1999 and again in 2003.
The Emerging Concept award went to Chilango, the quick-service Mexican format led by entrepreneurs Dan Houghton and Eric Partaker, which operates two outlets in central London and one in Sheffield, with two more set to open this spring – in Bluewater and Brighton.
The process to determine the winners saw a 700-strong bank of senior operators, industry experts and suppliers – known as the Retailers’ Academy – nominate the shortlists in each category. The shortlists were then sent back out to the Academy for final voting, with the finalists with the most votes emerging as the winners.
Full coverage of The Retailers’ Retailer of the Year Awards will appear in the April issue of M&C Report.
Mark Stretton is editor of BigHospitality's sister publication M&C Report