Publican Awards 2016: Best managed pub company (51+ sites)

Going head to head against another industry giant, Whitbread, Greene King came out on top to take the title on the 25th anniversary of the awards at Battersea Evolution in London.

With more than 1,800 venues split across two division, Local and Destination, Greene King is a sprawling operator, but with a very strong sense of identity across all its various outlets.

While the merger with Spirit is still bedding in, judges were impressed with the strides already made and the way in which the company still managed to retain a degree of individualism within its estate, despite the size.

Key stand outs included a deal to tie up with Tesco’s Clubcard operations, giving the business access to a massive range of new potential customers.

Ed Bedington, editor of the Publican’s Morning Advertiser, which organises the awards, said: “Greene King is a great example of how size doesn’t have to mean sacrificing innovation and the ability of the business to allow managers at the local level to retain independence over their own operations is to be applauded.

“Within premium operations, it was also great to see such a large business investing to ensure produce and ingredients were fresh and locally sourced, adding real depth to the menus of those outlets.”