Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Builders merchant organisation the Builders Merchants Federation rewarded the achievements of younger merchants at the Federations’s first-ever awards night last night.
At the Whittlebury Hall Hotel, on the eve of BMF Merchants Day, awards were presented to the winners of the Level 2 and Level 3 Apprentice of the Year and the first-ever BMJ/BMF Young Merchant Achiever award.
BMF managing director John Newcombe said: “These are special awards for special people. These young people are the future of our industry.”
The BMJ/BMF Young Merchant Achiever of 2013 was Steven Rennie of Keith Builders Merchants. The runner-up was Builders Supplies (West Coast)’s Ben Rule and highly commended trophies were awarded to MKM’s Glenn Paddison, RGB’s Laura Stroud and Bradford Building Supplies Ben White.
The award was sponsored by SCA Timber; in addition to the £3,000 cash prize from BMJ and the BMF, the winner received a trip to Sweden and an SCA trophy.
The runner-up received a trophy and an iPad, courtesy of Bostik.
The winner of the Level 2 Apprentice of the Year, sponsored by Aggregate Industries, was Milford Builders Merchants Nathan Medlam. Ridgeons’ James Matlock won the Level 3 Apprentice of the Year, sponsored by the Institute of Builders Merchants.
The BMJ/BMF Young Merchant Achiever Award was a joint initiative between BMJ and the BMF’s Young Merchants group, designjed to recognise and reward achievements of younger members of the merchanting community. The age limit was 35 and the award, in its first year, attracted around 30 nominations. These were whittled down to a short-list of 11, with the final 5 being decided by a judging panel made up of the BMF, BMJ, the chairman of the Young Merchants group and SCA Timber.
