The British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) has announce the 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.