The Convenience Awards 2026 are now open for entries. Brought to you by Convenience Store, The Grocer and Lumina Intelligence, the Convenience Awards 2026 takes place on Wednesday 11 March 2026 at an eclectic awards ceremony held at a brand new venue - Rum Warehouse at Titanic Hotel, Liverpool to celebrate the very best of the convenience community.
It’s important to help your store stand out as much as possible, so we’ve collected some top tips to help your entry. Deadline for entries is Monday 15 September so get yours started now!
1. Don’t leave it to the last minute. Start now, get your research together and apply early. The sooner you start your application, the more time you’ll have to work on it. Leaving it to deadline day might mean you leave out important information or not show your store in the best light.
2. Focus on the categories that best fit your store. There may be a temptation to enter as many categories as possible but it’s better to enter fewer categories and do them well.
3. Read the questions and understand what’s being asked of you. Before answering the questions, prepare as you can in advance to answer them properly and in as much detail as possible. Decide what points you want to get across and in what order.
4. Collect as much relevant supporting material as possible. For example if you’re entering the Community Retailer of the Year category, make sure to include testimonials and evidence of work done in the community.
5. Images - it’s vital to show off your store in the best light . The images used in entries will be part of the judging process so make sure you’re happy they’re of high quality and make your store look as good as possible.
6. Don’t be shy! Include everything you think will help your entry stand out from the competition. The Convenience Awards are extremely competitive with high calibre entrants so it’s vital you leave nothing out and be confident about your store.
7. Get recording! We have updated the entry form so retailers can submit videos of their stores as part of their entry. Get your phones out and show us what is great about your store!
8. Read your entry one more time before submitting it. Or even better, get someone else to read it so it makes sense and hasn’t left anything out. If you ask a member of your team to read through, they might remember something you haven’t that is worth including.
If you still need some help with your entry, here’s an example of an award-winning store!
The Convenience Awards 2026 are kindly sponsored by Booker, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Rollover, Suntory and Warburtons.
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