Waitrose Cheltenham's Mike Snowdon: Store Manager of the Year

One by one, store managers from Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose filed into a room deep in London’s magnificent Guildhall and launched their bid to be crowned Store Manager of the Year.

All five delivered a strong pitch, but there could only be one winner - Mike Snowdon, store manager at the 59,000 sq ft Waitrose Food & Home superstore in Cheltenham.

“I’m absolutely delighted,” said Snowdon after picking up the trophy. “It’s testament to the fantastic work and attitude that all of our 550 Waitrose Cheltenham Partners put in every day. It’s a joy to come to work with such a wonderful team and provide our customers with the very best experience and service.”

Snowdon, the first Waitrose manager to scoop the award, was singled out for some “impressive numbers”, his “obvious initiative and resourcefulness” in a “slick presentation” and a “calm but purposeful demeanour” under questioning.

Snowdon set up a Cheltenham Academy that has gone on to groom a number of branch managers and other senior staff; increased takings in the cafe by 30%, despite the introduction of free coffee and tea offered by Waitrose; kept a tight control of costs; improved the click & collect service; and sorted out an initially messy switch of supply from John Lewis to Waitrose on the non-food side.

“It was a very clear, comprehensive presentation all round,” said one judge. “There was nothing he fell down on and he still seems hungry. If a challenge arose you get the feeling he would bust a gut to fix it without the customers suffering.”