In to win for our customers

The 26th annual Hardware Awards took place in May, with PlaceMakers featuring heavily in the finals of all trade retail-related categories – and winning two key awards

Conducted live for the first time since lockdown last year, the 26th annual awards night celebrated the achievements of the trade retail and supply sector in what has been another challenging year for everyone in the industry.

PlaceMakers was once again nominated in all ‘Hardware and Builders’ Supply Merchant’ categories, demonstrating our expertise and the exceptional people dedicated to servicing our customers needs. 

Trade Store of the Year 

Winner: PlaceMakers Riccarton

This award recognises sheer quality of service. Christchurch Hub Operations Manager Malcolm Ross said PlaceMakers Riccarton being named Trade Store of the Year “shows that hard work and determination in a tough market pays off”.

He said the store’s biggest achievement is “ensuring that our staff and customers have always come first, no matter what 2020/21 has kindly gifted us”.

“We are a large format store but have always ensured we have the personal relationships with our builders and always listened to what they want and how we can work together to enhance their business.”

Finalist: PlaceMakers Mt Wellington

The 2020 winning team narrowly missed out on adding another trophy to its cabinet, but is proud to be recognised for keeping up its exceptionally high standards with a place in the finals.

“It’s wonderful recognition for the whole team at Mt Wellington to be recognised as the preeminent trade store in the Auckland area and one of just three finalists in this category nationally – it’s humbling!” said PlaceMakers South East HUB Sales Manager Bob Barsdell.

“Our people, our culture, our continuity and consistency through disruption, while remaining hungry for improvement and always keeping the customer at the centre of what we do – that’s what I believe makes Mt Wellington so special.”

Retailer of the Year 

Winner: Gene Simmiss,
PlaceMakers Blenheim

This award recognises a truly outstanding retailer or builders’ merchant (aged 33 years or over), who has shown initiative and enterprise in leading their team.

Judges look for the “best of the best” in the DIY retail and building supply sector and every finalist is considered a benchmark for their profession.

Gene is a relative ‘newbie’ to the industry, but he has quickly turned around what was, before lockdown, an underperforming store, reconnecting with customers and his team and leading them through a ground-up reset of the business, as well as the disruption of a complete refit. 

“We have changed the perception of the business inside and out,” said Gene. “A number of customers have returned, who haven’t shopped here for a long time, and we have provided the staff a place where they are proud to work and empowered them within their workplace to take ownership of their areas.”

The results speak for themselves – as does the industry recognition that comes with this award. Well done Gene and the Blenheim team!

Finalist: Roger McRae,
PlaceMakers Mt Wellington

With two Trade Store of the Year awards to his credit, Roger again paid tribute to his team, who he describes as “the life and heart of the business” – and PlaceMakers South East HUB Operations Manager Chris Hawkins seconds that. 

Chris said that a team that features several highly promising future managers happily “goes the extra mile” for him. “Roger values his people and it shows,” he said.

Trade Account Manager of the Year

This award recognises a trade account manager, who has consistently displayed a high standard of sales professionalism and has a proven record in account management. 

Finalist: Sai Ma,
PlaceMakers Auckland South-East HUB

A finalist in 2019, Sai Ma is back in the finalists’ group for 2021. A key to his continued success is his ability to understand the customer’s pain points
and find clear solutions, anticipate material shortages and work through the issues with team, suppliers and customers, always communicating clearly.

Finalist: Yuan Pei,
PlaceMakers Auckland South-East HUB

Another high performer in Auckland’s ultra-competitive market, Yuan Pei puts his success down to being open and honest with customers, sometimes “offering opinions or suggestions that they might not like, but have to know about”.

Finalist: Ryan Rooney,
PlaceMakers New Plymouth 

Ryan only joined the New Plymouth team in September last year and has already made a big impression. Describing him as “hard working and driven”, New Plymouth Branch Operator Jeremy Donoghue says Ryan has quickly built strong relationships and gained the respect of his team and his customers thanks to a positive attitude and ability to find solutions in difficult situations.

Young Retailer of the Year

Finalist: Nadia Ducrot,
PlaceMakers New Lynn

This award recognises a young retailer or builders’ merchant (aged 32 years or under) who has achieved a high standard in their retailing career. 

Nadia has been with PlaceMakers for 13 years, but has only been in her role as New Lynn Branch Manager for the past 10 months.

Nadia Ducrot is devoted to growing and developing future leaders, saying “you cannot get places without a strong team behind you”.

Clearly demonstrating a “growth mindset”, Nadia has re-shaped New Lynn’s operations, leading to massive FY2021 gains through simplifying daily tasks and streamlining despatch for a faster, better, and more transparent and accurate service.

Morgan Caine, PlaceMakers West Auckland HUB Operations Manager, called Nadia a “passionate leader” with a “diligent and compassionate” leadership style.

Finalist: Karl Hallowes,
PlaceMakers Cook Street

PlaceMakers Central North HUB Trade Support Manager Karl Hallowes is charged with planning, directing and leading a 20+-strong HUB Trade Support team across multiple locations, and his problem-solving skills have made a huge difference to his colleagues.

His complete rethinking of the back order and allocation process has armed his Account Managers with “accurate and honest” information at a time when supply often simply cannot meet demand, reducing pressure on them.

Dale King, PlaceMakers North Central HUB Manager, said: “Karl is a natural leader of people and displays a level of maturity vastly beyond his years.”

Congratulations

The strong presence of PlaceMakers team members in these categories demonstrates our ongoing commitment to our customers. We are proud to be acknowledged by the industry in this way and would like to extend our congratulations to all the winners, finalists and nominees this year!