Store of the week: Sainsbury’s Denton, Manchester

When you last won The G33 in November 2012, you’d only been store manager for three weeks. How have you settled in? Really well. I love life at the store. My colleagues have been fantastic. We’ve had a great year with positive year-on-year growth. I’ve worked in retail for 30 years, so to join Sainsbury’s and win The Grocer 33 twice in 18 months is outstanding.

Have you made any changes to the store? No. We have focused on availability, customer service and store standards. We talk about service every day in our huddles and that’s really coming through in our internal mystery shop scores. We’re also developing the team, promoting from within and training new managers.

Has trading been hit by the poor weather since Christmas? I’ve always said bad weather gives customers a reason to shop because they don’t go on days out. If there’s rain outside, we get ready for a busy day!

You won our Valentine’s G33 - how is your store preparing for the day? We’ve got a ‘shop within a shop’ where we’ve put all our Valentine’s offer in one place. We’re also making it a fun event and our produce colleagues will be suited and booted. We’re expecting strong sales on Saturday, too, for those who decide to celebrate over the weekend.

What plans do you have for your store in 2014? More of the same. I want to build on our successful 2013. Online is in double-digit growth and we want to grow the Delivery Pass. And I want to bring more talent through. I may steer the ship, but every one of my colleagues plays a part in our success.

What do you think about Justin King’s departure and Mike Coupe’s appointment? It’s sad to see Justin go because he has been paramount in the transformation of Sainsbury’s over the years. But it’s also really exciting about Mike’s appointment. It’s really well-deserved and shows the strength in our team.