Publican Awards winner's story - Admiral Taverns - Best Large Tenanted

"We saw our enquiries [rise] due to the increased PR and we have also had speculative enquiries from good people who want to work with us," chief executive Kevin Georgel tells The Morning Advertiser​.

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"Morale and the desire to continue succeeding have increased among teams and many of our licensees have expressed their pride at being part of a winning team."

The company, which fought off competition from Star Pubs & Bars, Shepherd Neame and Greene King, was recognised for its strong approach to partnerships within its estate, particularly the deal to buy 111 non-core pubs from Star and turn a number of sites, which had been struggling to survive, into thriving operations.

Additionally, a wide package of support delivered by the board had pleased tenants, which was reflected in the extremely high scores the company received from the Tenant Tracker research carried out by MCA.

Even though Admiral has two wins under its belt, the pub group refuses to 'rest on its laurels'.

Feedback has been 'gleaned' from the judges around the elements that helped the company stand out, Georgel points out, to "make sure we continue with those aspects of our business and improve our offer where we feel we can".

"Entering the awards enables you to take a close, detailed analysis of the business and seek improvements," he continues.

"It also affirms what you are doing well. Having experts question and view the business through the judging process can only be a positive thing and the entry itself is a very useful tool to be used in the strategy of the business."

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