NEW YEAR HONOURS LIST

PEOPLE NEWS: RETAIL RECIPIENTS

RETAILERS RECOGNISED

THE QUEEN’S NEW YEAR HONOURS LIST SAW A NUMBER OF RETAILERS HONOURED FOR THEIR SERVICES TO THEIR COMMUNITIES, CHARITY AND THE RETAIL TRADE.

GRAHAM WATSON, BEM AND TEAM

LINDA CARRINGTON, BEM

After the year that was 2020 and the heroic role that local retailers played in serving communities across the UK in the most trying of circumstances, it seems entirely fitting that a number of retailers have been recognised in the Queen’s New Year Honours List.

Lanarkshire Nisa retailer Abdul Majid has been honoured with an MBE while both Dumfries & Galloway Premier retailer Graham Watson and Grimsby Spar retailer Linda Carrington were honoured with a British Empire Medal (BEM).

Former Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF) President Abdul Majid was awarded the MBE on the recommendation of the Prime Minister and on the advice of the independent Main Honours Committee following an independent assessment process. Based in Bellshill, Abdul is a hugely respected figure within the industry and is widely seen as being a driving force behind the restructuring of SGF in 2015, which saw Pete Cheema take the reins as CEO and re-established the Federation as a major force within the industry.

The award was made for outstanding service to the local community, Scottish retail and to charities at home and abroad.

Abdul said: “I am surprised but humbled to be bestowed the award of MBE in the Queens New Year’s honours. I would like to thank my family and friends as well as my retailer colleagues at the SGF for their love and support. I would also like to offer a special mention for the wonderful people at the following charities for all their efforts locally and abroad: Sarwar Foundation, St Andrews Hospice and Maggie’s Lanarkshire. And finally, I’d also like to thank the good people of Bellshill for putting up with me these past 37 years!”

Commenting on his BEM, Graham Watson said: “I am genuinely moved and humbled by this and would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who lives in Moniaive and Glencairn and right throughout Southwest Scotland who have supported the shop over the last year. In particular I’d like to big up all our fantastic staff who have given their all in support of the shop and the community as a whole – thank you.”

Linda Carrington, who manages AF Blakemore’s Laceby Lodge forecourt convenience store in Grimsby, was also deservedly recognised for her exceptional services to the community during Covid-19. She has almost 40 years of service with the company.

Linda commented: “I am truly honoured to receive this BEM award. When I first found out about it, I couldn’t believe it – in fact, I actually deleted the Honours email as I didn’t think it was real! I couldn’t have achieved this recognition without the hard work of my team, so I see it as an honour for all my colleagues who have worked tirelessly throughout the year to keep essential services going for the community. It’s fantastic to know that we’re really making a difference.”

A customer who Linda delivered to, Steve Trist, whose wife has been shielding, commented: “As lockdown took its toll, the team literally became our lifeline. Living in a rural area and having no close family or friends who were not themselves in isolation, we were not well-placed to get through.

“I can’t start to tell you how important and how valued and appreciated their help was and still is. In such difficult times it is clear that Mrs Carrington and her team were themselves on the frontline. I feel very privileged to have met such helpful, kind, caring and supportive people.”