Owners of cafes and pubs shops and a fitness centre for women in
Long Eaton are celebrating after customers voted them as winners
for providing good service.
The Good Town Traders Scheme recognises and celebrates the
achievements of businesses and rewards them for their commitment to
excellence and customer service.
Organised by enterprise agency Erewash Partnership with the
borough council's Pride in Erewash campaign, it aims to highlight
the attraction of shopping locally.
Of the winners, only Asda retained the prize that it won last
year for being the best place locally to buy food.
But some winners from 2010 were successful in other categories
compared to the previous year. So Café Zing won best
café instead of super sandwich, and Wild Goose Café
which previously won best customer service came tops for its clean
shop front.
The awards were presented at Pete's Upper Crust Café in
High Street which held a joint event, complete with a birthday cake
and music by Long Eaton Silver Prize Band, to celebrate work on a
restored shop front to restore it to its former glory of 100 years
ago.
It won its third prize in a row - the accolade for best service
for looking after babies, having won best café/restaurant
for the previous two years.
Partner Pete Thein said: "I'm just happy to have won an award of
any sort, knowing that it's the customers who have voted for it,"
he said.
With the restoration work soon to be finished Pete said he was
hoping to win trade for the café and the High Street in
general.
Energie Fitness for Women on Tamworth Road, which has more than
300 members, took the overall best prize for customer service.
Trainer Linda Peacock, one of the four staff, said: "We are all
very proud at winning this award, particularly as we are only
eligible for some of the categories."
The awards - a trophy and a certificate - were presented by the
Mayor of Erewash, Councillor Robert Parkinson, and Erewash market
towns co-ordinator Paul Calladine.
"These awards mean a lot to the businesses concerned and their
owners because they are voted for by the customers themselves, the
people who regularly patronise these places and spend their money
there," said Paul.
Award winners:
Best café/restaurant - Café Zing; Best pint &
pub grub -The Twitchell Inn; Best place to buy food - Asda;
Best customer service - Energie Fitness for Women; Most
attractive market stall - Knowles Fruit and Veg; Most friendly
store to babies and children - Pete's Upper Crust Café; Most
friendly store to people with disabilities - Gifts Galore; Cleanest
shop front - Wild Goose Café; Best window display - The
House of Ashley Peake; Super sandwich - Subway.