ALTRINCHAM town centre businesses turned out in force to recognise the achievements of businesses from a range of sectors at the first Altrincham Unlimited BID Awards.

Hosted by BBC North West presenter Beccy Barr, the awards took place at the Cresta Court Hotel in Altrincham on June 20.

Winners and runners up in nine categories were selected based on the results of a month-long ‘mystery shopper’ exercise, which had taken place during May, with all 71 participating businesses visited or contacted in person by researchers from industry experts Storecheckers.

Focusing on the customer experience, all businesses were judged on a range of factors, including venue appearance, products and pricing, website, service, sales and local knowledge. Overall Altrincham as a town performed extremely well, with businesses receiving an average score of 85.5 per cent, putting it in the ‘premier league’ of towns and cities visited by Storecheckers, alongside Cambridge and Manchester city centre.

Katie Bland, BID manager for Altrincham Unlimited said: “It was really important to the Altrincham Unlimited Board that business assessments were completely independent and impartial, and with 25 years’ industry experience, Storecheckers were able to offer a credible and robust mystery shopper programme.

“The benefits for Altrincham businesses are twofold. Firstly it enables us to highlight and celebrate those businesses that excel in customer service, and secondly it provides the participating businesses with detailed feedback on the customer experience, which will identify any areas for improvement, and ultimately help to improve profit and performance.

“We’re delighted to see that Altrincham as a town has performed extremely well, with both independent businesses and high street names doing themselves proud – and eight businesses scoring a perfect 100 per cent - an amazing achievement on such a wide-ranging assessment.

"We would like to thank all the businesses that took part, and hope the findings prove informative and useful.

“Our thanks go also to the Cresta Court hotel for their assistance in hosting an enjoyable and very successful event.”

Jeff Caplan, managing director of Storecheckers said: “We are very pleased to be supporting Altrincham Unlimited with this project in a town which is clearly headed in the right direction.

"Being near to where we live and work, Altrincham is close to our hearts, so it is fantastic to see that not only has the BID area been going through a period of evident regeneration, but also that businesses are stepping up to the plate by delivering high standards and acting as ambassadors for the whole town.

“By delivering these high standards over a sustained period Altrincham can attract customers, new and old, improve consumer loyalty and have more chance of competing with online retail, through an excellent interpersonal experience.

“We can see that Katie and the Altrincham BID team are working incredibly hard alongside the board to improve and promote the Altrincham experience and we at Storecheckers look forward to being a part of that ongoing improvement in the years to come.”

The winners and runners-up in each category were:

Best Pub/ Bar.

Winner: The Cheshire Tap; Runners-up: Riddles, The Cellar.

Best Restaurant.

Winner: Sugo; Runners-up: Bistrot Pierre, Cholaas.

Best Café.

Winner: Velo Espresso, Runners-up: Eat:kaizen, Burrito Picante.

Best Beauty/ Well-being service.

Winner: Runway Pilates (100% score); Runners-up: Toni & Guy, Shop4Supplements.

Best Professional Service.

Winner: Jameson & Partners (100% score); Runners-up: Tax Assist (100% score), RMS PR (100% score).

Best Independent Retailer- Fashion/Jewellery/Home Interiors.

Winner: Randalls Jewellery (100% score); Runners-up: Diadem Jewellery (100% score), Wells & Hewitt.

Best Specialist Retailer.

Winner: Amplifon (100% score); Runners-up: Dawsons, Riddles Emporium.

Best Multiple Retailer.

Winner: Monsoon; Runners-up: House of Fraser, Barclays.

Best Leisure/ Tourism Service.

Winner: Cresta World Travel (100% score); Runners-up: Art with a Heart, Licensed Black Cabs.