Go behind the entries and get to know the people, projects and organisations shortlisted for The Revo’s 2026. Discover their stories, achievements and the work making an impact across our industry.
ITVET – PARTNERSHIP, INNOVATION AND IMPACT
Category
Professional Service Provider of the Year
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The REVOs shine a spotlight on the people and organisations driving positive change across the retail destination sector. We wanted to be part of that conversation and share how we’re using technology, collaboration and innovation to help create smarter, more sustainable places while delivering lasting value for our clients and the communities they serve.
What makes your entry standout?
Our entry stands out because it combines measurable business outcomes with long-term industry contribution. We delivered a major network transformation at around 50% lower acquisition cost than the incumbent solution while also reducing energy consumption, supporting ESG objectives and strengthening operational resilience. Beyond project delivery, we’ve educated around 250 property professionals on responsible AI adoption and repurposed more than 500 devices through our Laptops for Schools initiative. It demonstrates how technical excellence, innovation and social impact can work hand in hand.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We believe the future of the retail destination sector will be shaped by intelligent, connected and increasingly data-driven environments, where technology partners play a strategic role in helping landlords and managing agents improve experiences, reduce costs and meet sustainability goals. We want to contribute by helping the industry adopt emerging technologies, particularly AI, in a practical, secure and responsible way. Through education, innovation and trusted partnerships, we aim to help our clients make informed decisions that deliver lasting value for both their assets and their communities.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Impact.
BOGDAN CHIFOR, EXCHANGE ILFORD
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
I wanted to enter The Revo’s to share my journey from Guest Services to Soft Service Manager at Exchange Ilford and recognise the team who have supported me along the way. I’m proud of the work we do to make the centre safe, welcoming and enjoyable for our visitors. Entering was an opportunity to celebrate that work and show others that, with commitment and a willingness to learn, there are real opportunities to progress in our industry.
What makes your entry standout?
My entry stands out because my progression has been built on practical experience, working alongside the teams I now lead. Since joining Exchange Ilford in 2022, I have progressed from Guest Services to managing security and cleaning, with a strong focus on supporting people and improving standards. I have helped expand first aid training, encouraged staff development and strengthened relationships with retailers and the local BID. I lead by example, whether responding to an emergency or supporting the team day to day. For me, success means helping others grow while making a positive difference to the centre.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
I see the future of our industry as creating places where people feel safe, welcome and connected to their community. Technology and sustainable working practices will help us improve services, but skilled and caring teams will remain essential. I hope to contribute by developing my own leadership, supporting training and progression for my team, and finding practical ways to improve the visitor experience. I also want to encourage others starting in frontline roles to see the opportunities available to them and build the confidence to progress.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Progressive.
KIRSTY NOBLE, SAVILLS, HARLEQUIN
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
Last year I was very proud to take home ‘Retail Liaison of the Year’ at the Sceptre awards, and we believe the highly prestigious nature of the Revo’s is the perfect next step in gaining further industry recognition for my achievements.
What makes your entry standout?
I think the amount and variety of achievements in a relatively short timeframe make my entry standout, alongside my initiative and desire to think outside the box to generate additional revenue for our tenants, and directly support both the landlord and asset managers. The incredible testimonials that retailers and business partners wrote about me are genuinely humbling, especially the belief that my impact extends beyond the centre, to the wider Watford business community.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
I truly believe the demand for tenant data and spending insights will only continue to grow, as the future of shopping centres must evolve in line with changing customer habits and demands. Communication and relationship management skills underpin everything in my role and are the core foundation to obtaining these insights, so this is something I hope to support other schemes with through my Reatil Liason Cluster Lead role.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Transcending.
WILL GREENLAND, ASHLEY CENTRE
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The Revo Awards are a great opportunity to celebrate the people making a tangible difference to retail destinations and the communities they serve. Since stepping into the Centre Manager role at the Ashley Centre in January, I’ve been focused on building stronger relationships with retailers, improving the customer experience and driving commercial performance. Entering the Rising Star Award felt like an opportunity to recognise the collective effort of the centre team and our partners, while showcasing how proactive management, collaboration and a willingness to try new approaches can deliver meaningful results.
What makes your entry standout?
The combination of a people-focused approach to success and the measurable impact achieved across every aspect of the Ashley Centre’s performance.
On top of strong footfall and sales, our customer service scores have risen from 86% to 94%. At the same time, tenant satisfaction has increased by 19%, reflecting stronger communication and more cooperative relationships. For me, these results demonstrate the value of combining data-led decision-making with a genuine focus on people. Whether it’s sharing weekly footfall insights with retailers, improving customer facilities or working with local partners, the aim is always to create a better experience and a stronger destination for everyone.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future of retail destinations must be shaped by collaboration, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of what customers and retailers need. Successful centres must go beyond providing retail space to become welcoming, well-connected places that play an active role in their communities. Data will be increasingly important in helping us understand customer behaviour and supporting retailers, but it’s equally vital to build strong relationships and listen to feedback. I hope to contribute by continuing to challenge the status quo, finding practical ways to improve performance and customer experience, and bringing retailers, teams and community partners together to create destinations that remain relevant and resilient.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Initiative.
LYDIA SWALLOW, TOOLBOX MARKETING
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The Revo’s are the gold standard for placemaking and retail destinations, so entering felt like the natural place to share what we’ve been building. Over the past 18 months at Toolbox Marketing, I’ve seen first-hand how fast the digital landscape is moving and how crucial it is for physical spaces to keep up. I wanted to enter to show that modern destination marketing starts long before someone walks through the door – it begins online. Being recognised by the industry benchmark is an incredible validation of the hard work we’ve put into transforming digital performance for destinations, and it highlights how vital fresh digital ideas are for supporting the high street.
What makes your entry standout?
For me, it comes down to balancing creativity with real, practical impact. I’ve always believed digital marketing shouldn’t just look good on screen, it needs to give people a genuine reason to visit and engage. Over the past 18 months, that focus has meant delivering six website relaunches with strong organic traffic growth, designing interactive campaigns that boosted one client’s database by over 40%, and turning a website completely pink for an Ed Sheeran homecoming to increase dwell time. Alongside the day-to-day work, I’ve been really keen to explore what’s coming next, helping our clients track and adapt to AI search and Overviews before it becomes an afterthought. Sharing those insights at the ATCM Summer School and writing for Retail Destination has simply come from a genuine passion for seeing our destinations and town centres thrive.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The way people discover places to shop, eat, and spend their weekends is shifting fast. We’re moving away from traditional scrolling and search bars toward conversational AI, instant answers, and hyper-local discovery. The destinations that thrive will be the ones that blur the line between screen and street, turning digital curiosity into real-world footfall without any friction.
I want to be the bridge that helps destinations navigate that shift smoothly. My goal is to make advanced digital strategy and AI visibility accessible and practical for retail destinations of all sizes, rather than something daunting. By continuing to test new ideas, share what works through speaking and writing, and mentor newer marketers on our team, I hope to help keep our high streets vibrant, visible, and one step ahead of changing consumer habits.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Innovative.
GWQ MANAGEMENT TEAM: TRANSFORMING CHALLENGE INTO OPPORTUNITY
Category
Centre Management Team of the Year (Commercial Success)
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The team at Gunwharf Quays have delivered over and above, across all aspects of centre management, and continue to out perform expectations. The REVOs are the pinnacle in terms of awards within the property industry, and we believe the team here are the best of the best.
What makes your entry standout?
Our consistent delivery of win-win outcomes, through partnership working with Brand Partners, local businesses and service partners, to achieve commercial success, sets the team at Gunwharf Quays apart. This commercial focus is based on both short-term and long-term success – this focus is our key differential when compared to the approach taken by other centres.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future of shopping centres isn’t really about retail anymore, it’s about destinations. We believe the most successful centres in the future will be places people choose to visit, not places they happen to shop. We are already on this journey, with the work we’re driving around the Waterfront, Spinnaker Tower, destination events, placemaking and stakeholder partnerships. Rather than simply being an outlet centre, Gunwharf Quays will evolve and grow, driven by experiences, dwell time and destination appeal rather than retail alone.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Connected.
VICTORIA LEEDS, TEAM OF THE YEAR
Category
Centre Management Team of the Year (Commercial Success)
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The Revo’s are the gold standard in our industry, recognising excellence and celebrating the hard work that goes on behind the scenes. Entering is an opportunity to recognise our team’s dedication and passion, celebrate what we have achieved together, and give everyone the recognition they deserve. A win would be a fantastic achievement and a real boost to team morale.
What makes your entry standout?
Our team’s deep-rooted connection to Victoria Leeds sets us apart. Many have worked here for years, building an unrivalled knowledge of the destination and a genuine emotional attachment to the place, with stories and memories spanning its evolution. As the people working alongside such a historic setting, they are bringing its past to life while helping shape its future.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We believe the future of our industry is built on connection – connecting people with places, brands with audiences, and visitors with experiences that create lasting memories.
Victoria Leeds is more than a traditional shopping centre; it is a city-centre destination that brings people together for every occasion, from everyday shopping to life’s most memorable celebrations. Ultimately, our success lies not just in what we offer, but in how we make people feel, and the lasting connections we create.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Passionate.
LANDSEC: LIVERPOOL ONE
Category
Centre Management Team of the Year (Commercial Success)
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
We wanted to enter the REVO Awards because 2025/26 represented an extraordinary period of change, challenge and achievement. Following Liverpool ONE’s acquisition by Landsec, the team successfully navigated a complex mobilisation programme that involved transferring colleagues, implementing new systems and processes, onboarding service partners and embedding a new operating model, all while maintaining exceptional standards of performance. We felt this was an opportunity to recognise the dedication, adaptability and collaboration demonstrated by every member of the team. Entering the REVO Awards allows us to celebrate the people behind these results. The entry is ultimately about recognising a team that embraced uncertainty, remained relentlessly focused on guests and brand partners, and turned a period of significant change into one of the most successful years in Liverpool ONE’s history.
What makes your entry standout?
I think this entry shows that not only did the Centre Management Team collaborate effectively throughout a period of significant change, but as a team we have delivered portfolio-leading commercial growth, at the same time as managing a complex acquisition and mobilisation.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
I believe the future of shopping centres lies in their evolution as places that give people compelling reasons to visit, spend time and return. A place where they feel they belong! Success will increasingly depend not only on the strength of the retail offer, but on the quality of the whole experience and this includes distinctive events, culture, hospitality, inclusive guest services and a strong sense of place. Liverpool ONE is well placed to help shape that future. Our placemaking credentials are already firmly established and our experience is helping to influence the direction of travel across Landsec’s wider portfolio. We want to contribute by continuing to test new ideas, share what works and demonstrate how commercially successful destinations can also create meaningful social and civic value. Central to this is Liverpool ONE’s understanding that it is a ‘place within a place’. Its success is inseparable from the success and identity of Liverpool itself. That means working collaboratively across the wider ecosystem – with city partners, communities, cultural and visitor-economy organisations, transport providers, brand partners and neighbouring businesses – to create experiences no single organisation could deliver alone. By combining strong local partnerships with Landsec’s national scale, insights and capabilities, Liverpool ONE can help set a progressive model for the next generation of retail and leisure destinations: locally rooted, experience-led and commercially resilient.
What one word best summarises your entry?
PASSION!
HARLEQUIN, WATFORD
Category
Centre Management Team of the Year (Commercial Success)
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
2025/26 has been a redefining year for the scheme, but in particular for the centre management team. From listening to customer feedback and putting forward ideas to rebuild the scheme, 2025/26 has seen many transforming ideas implemented, and the results speak for themselves. If we ever have a year to shout about the great work of the team…this is the year
What makes your entry standout?
What makes Harlequin’s submission stand out is a culture of collaboration, where great ideas can come from anywhere, are shaped around the genuine needs of customers and occupiers, and are brought to life through a shared commitment to delivery. The centre’s continued success is driven by a management team that works as one, uniting commercial strategy, operational excellence, strong occupier relationships, marketing, security and customer insight. By combining these strengths and recognising the value each discipline brings, the team turns individual expertise into collective impact, delivering meaningful results and creating a stronger experience for everyone who visits, works in or partners with Harlequin.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
Online businesses sell to the world; shopping centres sell to their community. A modern retail destination aims to encourage its local community to spend as much time with them as possible. This is done by building long lasting relationships, listening to their needs and wants, changing as they require you to and embedding that scheme in the hearts of the very community it serves. This is the approach that we take at Harlequin, and what makes us a thriving dual-purpose destination. Our onsite teams are the linchpins of this process. They live and breathe the scheme every day and are part of that community themselves, knowing more about the end user than anyone. The data in our entry shows what can be achieved by listening to the site teams and embracing the community’s needs.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Community.
ELLA BARKER, TOOLBOX MARKETING
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
I wanted to have the opportunity to be recognised for my work.
What makes your entry standout?
As an apprentice, I have a lot more to balance than others, balancing both my studies as well as many clients, and building on my positive results.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future is destinations. I hope to contribute to promoting destinations and bringing people to places.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Ambition.
MACEY MERRITT, EXCHANGE ILFORD
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
Entering the Revo Awards was an opportunity to reflect on both personal and professional growth, while celebrating the achievements and experiences that have shaped Macey’s career.
As someone passionate about retail and placemaking, Macey wanted to highlight the opportunities available within the industry and demonstrate to others what can be achieved through determination, creativity and a willingness to embrace new challenges. Above all, it was an opportunity to hopefully inspire others to explore their own potential.
What makes your entry standout?
Macey’s entry serves as a reminder that, despite challenging circumstances, finding the right working environment and a team that shares your values and ambitions can make all the difference.
Her experience demonstrates the importance of an aligned team, from management to security and guest experience, where everyone contributes towards the wider success of a destination.
This collaborative approach has encouraged creativity and adaptability, enabling the delivery of impactful campaigns across a range of budgets without compromising on quality, authenticity or customer engagement. Ultimately, her entry highlights how the right environment can unlock individual potential while creating meaningful results for the wider business.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
As the retail landscape continues to evolve, the importance of ‘real people, in real places, doing real things’ is greater than ever. Both businesses and shoppers are increasingly seeking genuine connections, support and guidance from people who understand their needs. The future of our industry lies in creating destinations that go beyond traditional retail, becoming spaces that support, engage and evolve alongside their communities.
Macey hopes to contribute to this future by championing authentic, people-led marketing, challenging conventional approaches and creating experiences that strengthen relationships between destinations, businesses and the communities they serve.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Real.
WILL JAMES, CAPTAIN GLOUCESTER
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
I was nominated by colleagues who felt my work over the past year deserved recognition. This has been a transformative year, both professionally and personally, as I have helped drive a new phase of growth for Gloucester.
At the start of the year, I made the decision to move away from a single-contractor model for marketing and events, bringing strategic leadership in-house and creating specialist support across both disciplines. The results have been significant. We have helped build a creator economy around Gloucester, establishing a social media presence and audience engagement that simply did not exist before.
We also launched Geek Out Gloucester, a brand-new flagship event that received widespread support from the BID, occupiers and local authority. The event achieved a 93% satisfaction rating, with 78% of attendees saying it improved their perception of Gloucester.
More than anything, this year has been about changing perceptions, not just of a retail destination, but of an entire city. I have been proud to put myself at the forefront of that change, stepping in front of the camera on TikTok and other social platforms to champion Gloucester and showcase what our team is achieving.
What makes your entry standout?
My colleagues nominated me because they have seen the confidence and determination I have brought to leading stakeholders, partners and businesses towards a shared vision of changing perceptions of Gloucester.
At just 25, I have helped challenge long-held assumptions about what the city is capable of. Last year, stakeholders told us Gloucester was not a “TikTok city” and could not support a major new destination event. Within six months, we proved otherwise.
Geek Out Gloucester delivered a 95% uplift in footfall compared with a typical day, generating an additional 35,329 visitors. Alongside this, we launched a new TikTok presence that transformed social media engagement levels from double figures to thousands, accumulating more than 23,000 likes in its first six months alone.
The journey has also pushed me far beyond my comfort zone. I became the face of our content, presenting regularly on social media and earning the tongue-in-cheek title of “Captain Gloucester”. It’s something I never imagined having the confidence to do, but it has enabled me to connect with audiences in a way that is helping reshape how people see Gloucester.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future of physical retail is centred on experience, community and placemaking. The distinction between simply providing space and creating a meaningful place will become increasingly important.
For town and city centre destinations, success will be determined by the ability to create emotional connections with local communities. Retail alone is no longer enough to drive loyalty and repeat visits. People are looking for experiences, events and opportunities to connect with others.
I believe the future of the industry lies in creating destinations that add genuine social value and become embedded within the communities they serve. As more aspects of life move online, physical places have an increasingly important role in bringing people together, supporting wellbeing and creating a sense of belonging. I hope to contribute by continuing to challenge traditional thinking, embracing innovation and using creativity, events and digital engagement to strengthen the relationship between people and places.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Awakening.
ABIGAIL KIRKHAM, LIVERPOOL ONE
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
I was actually nominated for the Rising Star at The Revo’s by my line manager! I think my nomination celebrates the impact I have made at Liverpool ONE, from improving engagement with our brand partners and developing resources that support operational excellence, to helping onboard major new brands and sharing best practice across the wider Landsec portfolio. It was great to be recognised for this during a period of significant change as Liverpool ONE integrated to the Landsec portfolio.
What makes your entry standout?
My role as Retail Manager involves supporting more than 170 brand partners, and I take great pride in being the trusted face our brands can rely on. Whether I am helping a new store prepare for opening, resolving day-to-day operational challenges, facilitating feedback sessions or coordinating communications across Liverpool ONE, my focus is always on creating positive outcomes and delivering a high standard of service.
Alongside this, I’ve supported some of the most significant retail openings in the UK, including onboarding the first ever LEFTIES UK store, the first ever ARNE permanent store – and openings which went viral like Sephora!
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
Whilst retail continues to evolve through technology and changing consumer behaviours, I see my role as bridging a gap between the retail brands and local knowledge. By building strong relationships with brand partners and understanding the specific needs of both the brand and our visitors, I can help identify local opportunities for brands that drive growth and improve performance. As the industry develops, I believe successful destinations will be those that combine local insight with strong partnerships to help them succeed.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Influential
OLIVIA DUNN, WESTGATE OXFORD
Category
Rising Star
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
I was nominated by my line manager and centre colleagues at Westgate Oxford. They have provided their rationale: –
We nominated Olivia on the basis of the excellent contribution she has made to the performance of Westgate Oxford over the last 12 months, but also as her hard work and success this year has demonstrated a successful transition from insights into retail asset management. We feel both deserve public recognition and that Olivia represents a positive role model for others who are considering entering the property industry or embarking on a retail asset management career via non-traditional routes. The REVO Awards are the right platform for our industry to celebrate these achievements as they showcase that both retail and retail property continue to provide successful career opportunities to a wide variety of people from different backgrounds, welcomes new perspectives and embraces different skill sets that underpin its constant evolution.
What makes your entry standout?
I believe what makes my entry stand out is that my journey demonstrates how bringing a different skill set into retail property can deliver real impact, and that entering a traditional function within the retail property industry is possible without having to follow the conventional route. Having worked in data and insights since university, before moving into asset management three years ago, I have leveraged my knowledge of data, alongside learning a completely new set of skills. This has enabled me to impact strategic decisions quickly, helping to shape the future direction of Westgate Oxford.
I am proud to have driven meaningful change at Westgate Oxford in a relatively short period. From leading the repositioning of the Lower Ground Floor through leasing and placemaking initiatives, to securing major brands such as LEGO, Hollister and Gail’s to improve the retail mix. This has helped to deliver record sales performance, reduce voids and improve customer satisfaction. As a result, my work has contributed to tangible commercial outcomes while also enhancing the guest experience. The submission demonstrates not only strong performance, but also how a collaborative and innovative approach can create long-term value for both investors, brands and guests.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future of our industry lies in creating places that are experience-focused destinations, using data-led methods to help inform decisions. As retail destinations increasingly compete for people’s time, and retailers want to be in the ‘best in class’ locations, we need a deeper understanding into our consumers – where they visit from, how they shop and how they choose to spend their time. This subsequently helps to identify where the opportunities lie so that we can create places which genuinely add value to our local communities and create destinations where consumers want to spend time and create memorable moments together through providing compelling reasons to visit.
I hope to play a part in that evolution by challenging traditional ways of thinking, through bringing a different perspective to asset management, using my unique skill set of data and customer insights to inform strategies, and help create assets that are both commercially successful and socially valuable. I also seek to demonstrate that non-traditional career paths into the property industry can add real value, through bringing different experiences and skill sets.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Transformative.
WORKLOAD OPTIMISATION – DATA-LED INNOVATION
Category
Prop Tech
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
We are extremely proud of the work we have done, in collaboration with Mitie to look at man power planning through a totally different lens. We believe this is the first time this has been managed effectively, delivering strong commercial results. The REVOs showcases the best of the best within the property industry, therefore we chose this platform to share our innovation and our achievements.
What makes your entry standout?
We believe people are everything, and having the right people in the right place at the right time is imperative in ensuring all of our guests receive great service. Our workload optimisation approach is unique – tracking footfall, sales, incidents, PPMs, cleaning requirements etc. and using this to ensure our teams are on site, and focused on the right things to ensure our guest safety and wellbeing is maintained.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The future of shopping centres isn’t really about retail anymore, it’s about destinations.
We believe the most successful centres in the future will be places people choose to visit, not places they happen to shop. We are already on this journey, with the work we’re driving around the Waterfront, Spinnaker Tower, destination events, placemaking and stakeholder partnerships. Rather than simply being an outlet centre, Gunwharf Quays will evolve and grow, driven by experiences, dwell time and destination appeal rather than retail alone.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Smart
IBOS BY WORKMAN
Category
Prop Tech
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The Revo’s are one of the most respected awards in the retail and leisure property world. It’s an emerging sector for building tech, and one where IBOS has already had a significant impact. Shopping centres and leisure destinations run some of the most complex and energy-intensive plant in commercial real estate, and IBOS was designed to tackle exactly that.
Over the past year, IBOS has delivered significant energy-cost savings across five UK retail destinations. It delivered significant, measurable improvements without the need for major capital investment or disruption to customer experience. We entered because these results belong in front of the people who run and invest in these destinations.
What makes your entry standout?
Many platforms collect building data and display it on dashboards, but IBOS goes beyond this. It pairs 24/7 monitoring with a specialist Building Technology team that works out why a building is underperforming. Using controlled Building Management System (BMS) write-back, the team then makes approved changes remotely through the building’s existing controls, and checks that each change has delivered the expected saving.
In the 12 months under review, this approach saved £487,249 across Broadway, Crystal Peaks, Putney Exchange, Silverburn, and Touchwood combined. It cut energy use by 26%, removed more than 3.1 million kWh and avoided 884,894 kgCO2e.
At Touchwood alone, energy consumption was reduced by 19%, while footfall rose by 5.1%, and occupier sales by 8.9% year-on-year. While we aren’t claiming that IBOS boosted visitor numbers or sales, these figures demonstrate that the savings came without any cost to the customer experience, or to the centre’s commercial performance.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We think PropTech will increasingly be assessed by results rather than on how much data it collects. IoT monitoring and energy dashboards are already commonplace, so the next step is turning that data into measurable reductions in cost and carbon, and into better decisions about where to spend capital.
We also expect owners to keep existing plant and controls in service for longer, using building data to separate the assets that genuinely need investment from those where better operation will be enough. IBOS is well placed to help with this. It already covers more than 100 properties and 14 million sq. Ft, and has delivered more than £13.5 million in cumulative savings.
We plan to keep showing that the same approach works for single assets, large portfolios and different ownership structures. We also want to give owners and investors a clear, auditable record of how their buildings perform, and what savings each improvement has delivered.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Proven.
HAPPY HUB, EASTGATE
Category
Independent Operator of the Year
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
We entered because Happy Hub shows a different side of what an independent operator can bring to a shopping centre. For 8 years we have run a café and shop whose trading income funds accessible wellbeing support, all from a rent-paying unit in Eastgate. Being recognised alongside other retail operators matters to us. It shows that community and wellbeing can sit at the heart of a retail destination, not on the edges of it. It is also a chance to celebrate our small team and our volunteers, many of whom first came through our doors needing support themselves.
What makes your entry standout?
Happy Hub is a shop and café first, so people can walk in for a coffee and leave with support, friendship or a volunteering role. Nobody needs a diagnosis, an appointment or a crisis to come in. That is the point. We believe looking after your mind should be as normal as grabbing a coffee or picking up your shopping. By putting wellbeing in the middle of a busy shopping centre, rather than behind a clinic door, we take away the stigma that stops so many people asking for help. Here, a conversation about how you’re feeling is just part of everyday life. Mental health isn’t something that only matters when things go wrong. A healthy mind is something everyone deserves, and Happy Hub is wellness for all, open to anyone who walks through the door.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
Shopping centres are becoming community destinations, where people come for health, connection and support as well as shopping. Eastgate is already moving this way, with a mini hospital opening in the centre. We want Happy Hub to be the community wellbeing presence that sits alongside it, offering the everyday, non-clinical support that keeps people well before they reach crisis point. Beyond Basildon, we would like to share our model with other centres and landlords. We want to show that a trading-led, community-focused independent can be a viable tenant and a real draw for footfall.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Transformative.
80S CASUAL CLASSICS AT THE LIBERTY, ROMFORD
Category
Independent Operator of the Year
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
As we celebrate our 20th anniversary and our first year at The Liberty Romford, it felt like the right time to share just how far we’ve come as a business. People have often said we should get involved given our role in bringing back iconic heritage brands, so it felt like a sensible opportunity to pursue.
What makes your entry standout?
Year after year we still move forward, and like any other business we’ve faced challenges – but unlike many we’ve continued to go from strength to strength. We’re more than an independent retailer, we’re cultural experts that are trusted by several iconic brands to offer insight and deliver highly coveted, exclusive stock. As a result, our customer base has grown to great heights, and developed into a community that we make an active, visible effort to work with.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We see ourselves at the forefront, as we know we fill a sought-after niche and do it well. From one side, our core goal has always been to uplift heritage retailers, supporting them in building a profile as they work their way back into the mainstream during the cultural revival. More than this, we’ve always worked to enable a scene that supports people in pursuit of their identity, given the fact that as a brand we are so heavily ingrained in the culture. It’s why our community champions 80s Casual Classics – because they know that ultimately, they are at the heart of all that we do.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Groundbreaking.
MILLIE MOO & FRIENDS
Category
Independent Operator of the Year
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
We entered to show what independent business can achieve together. The recognition of this award would strengthen our brand and raise awareness of Millie Moo & friends, helping us reach and inspire more independent businesses to take the next step in their growth.
What makes your entry standout?
Millie Moo & friends brings a whole community of independent businesses into a major shopping centre, giving them the opportunity to reach new customers and to gain confidence and experience within the retail sector. In our first 6 months we supported 66 brands and returned over £200,000 into the local independent retail economy.
We are creating a shopping experience and bringing back the personal touch. A warm welcome, proper conversations and sharing the stories behind our independents, helping customers to feel connected to the businesses they are supporting.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We believe the future of retail needs more personality, connection and reasons for people to visit in person. Our independents offer something truly special, from original and personalised products to genuine, personal customer service.
By creating the right mix, we want to show that bringing independents together can create a commercially successful shop while supporting the wider local community. Our goal is to build on what we have achieved in Watford, continue to build our brand and explore further locations to create more and more opportunities for small businesses to succeed, whilst bring the personal touch back to the high street.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Empowering.
CASTLE QUARTER – THE POWER OF ONE TEAM
Category
Centre Management Team of the Year (Commercial Success)
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
As a team, we’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved at Castle Quarter Norwich. Entering the Revo Awards was an opportunity to celebrate the people behind that success.
From supporting our tenants and driving footfall to delivering community initiatives that make a real difference, it’s been a year of hard work, creativity and collaboration, and we felt it was important to share and recognise that journey.
What makes your entry standout?
What makes our entry stand out is the combination of exceptional team continuity and a proven willingness to innovate.
Our four-person senior leadership team has remained unchanged since 2017, creating a level of trust, knowledge and collaboration that enables us to deliver results quickly and effectively. Over the past year, we’ve successfully navigated an ownership change, implemented real-time reporting dashboards, developed bespoke AI tools, delivered major operational projects, achieved significant utility savings, and earned both Green Apple Gold and International CSR Silver awards.
We haven’t just adapted to change, we’ve embraced it, combining commercial success, operational excellence, sustainability and community impact to drive Castle Quarter, Norwich forward.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
At Castle Quarter Norwich, we see the future as being about far more than retail.
Successful destinations will be those that bring together shopping, leisure, community, sustainability and innovation to create places people genuinely want to spend time in. Our ambition is for Castle Quarter to continue evolving as a vibrant hub for Norwich, supporting tenants, improving the customer experience, embracing new technologies, and delivering meaningful community initiatives.
By staying adaptable, investing in innovation, and keeping our community at the heart of everything we do, we hope to demonstrate how retail destinations can remain relevant, resilient and successful for years to come.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Transformational.
DOCKSIDE CHATHAM
Category
Best Asset Management Initiative.
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
We entered The REVO’s as we wanted to showcase our evolution from an outlet-led scheme to a sub-regional multi-use destination, through the introduction of a vibrant F&B line-up with community-driven services such as flexible workspace and health & wellbeing spaces to complement a strong retail and leisure line up in this location. We wanted to highlight to the retail world the hugely positive benefits of integrating healthcare and workspace into the line-up, driving sales, footfall and dwell time.
We have brought IWG’s HQ workspaces and its new Humanly healthcare spaces to Dockside, alongside F&B favourites Sotto Lounge, McDonald’s and You Me Sushi, which has seen sales grow by 12%, car park usage rising 50%, and catchment expansion of 13%. As a result, we are drawing more regular visitors from further across the region, which is significantly bolstering the performance across the wider retail and F&B offering.
The arrival of Humanly is also turning us into a regional destination for health and wellbeing services, by offering treatment-ready spaces for medical, therapy, wellness, beauty and fitness professionals to grow their businesses and customer base from a central, well-connected location, complemented by dining, leisure and retail.
What makes your entry standout?
Through our asset management strategy at Dockside, we have become an example of integrating essential services and wider community and business uses to drive the evolution from an outlet-led retail format to a more vibrant, mixed-use, day-to-evening proposition.
Introducing more healthcare to the high street has been a topic which has long been discussed, and at Dockside we were proud to launch the UK’s first Humanly space this year. We worked closely with IWG, with whom we built a strong relationship following the opening of its 11,000 sq ft HQ flexible workspaces last year, to convert underutilised retail space into in-demand flexible healthcare and wellbeing spaces to meet local and regional demand.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The wellbeing economy will transform how retail schemes meet the needs of their communities, bringing together a range of in-demand services within existing schemes and creating new reasons for people to visit. For a long time, the retail industry has discussed how healthcare and wellbeing services can become a key feature of the high street, and we have put this into practice. We but few have tried this in practice.
Through the opening of Humanly, Dockside has become a case study on how this can be delivered, and we expect many other retail schemes to follow our lead.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Reimagining.
THE CRESCENT, METROCENTRE
Category
Best Asset Management Initiative.
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
The Revo’s celebrate the innovation and ambition shaping the future of retail and placemaking, and are highly regarded by us and across the industry. Entering gives us the opportunity to showcase our work, learn from other inspiring projects across the sector, and recognise the hard work behind a year of achievement.
What makes your entry standout?
The Crescent has transformed an underutilised space at Metrocentre into a vibrant destination, giving independent retailers a platform to thrive alongside global brands. At a time when independent businesses face real challenges, it champions local entrepreneurship while enriching the customer experience and supporting the North East economy. The project uses strategic asset management to solve multiple challenges enhance the wider scheme, as well as provide endless benefits to the local community and economy.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We know physical retail will continue to face various challenges and obstacles, but we believe the next phase lies in offering customers emotive experiences, discovery, and connection that online shopping simply cannot replicate. We see massive potential in experiential retail, with brands pushing boundaries through innovative store design, new technology, and interactive experiences to elevate their products and keep customers engaged. At Metrocentre, our role is to create an environment where our tenants feel supported and confident to experiment. By embracing new ideas and building strong partnerships, we want to help brands evolve, elevate the customer experience, and keep Metrocentre at the forefront
What one word best summarises your entry?
Revitalised.
ROYAL VICTORIA PLACE CAR PARK
Category
Best Asset Management Initiative.
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
To gain recognition and showcase the turnaround of a major town centre shopping centre through public sector investment, through highlighting the transformation of its ageing car park from a maintenance liability into a future-proofed, low-carbon strategic asset delivering a customer focused experience.
What makes your entry standout?
✅ Clear strategic asset management vision linked to wider town centre regeneration.
✅ Strong measurable outcomes:
Car park occupancy increased from 29% to 49%.
Shopping centre footfall up 41.2%.
462,510 kWh renewable energy generation.
40% of centre energy demand supplied.
89.44 tonnes CO₂ reduction annually.
✅ Excellent partnership working.
✅ Strong customer-centric narrative.
✅ Significant investment (£1m+) with long-term asset protection.
✅ Demonstrable environmental innovation.
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
The shopping centre through investment and reinvention has a prominent role in the success and growth of town centres into the future, with Royal Victoria Place being one example of foresight and commitment.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Reinvention.
BAKED BY SWEET TOOTH
Category
Independent Operator of the Year.
Why did you want to enter The Revo’s?
As an independent business, you spend so much of your time focused on the next bake, the next customer and the next challenge that you rarely stop and look at how far you’ve come. What started as us baking around a full-time job has grown into something we could never have imagined. We’ve gone from supplying a handful of local businesses to trading at Gunwharf Quays, opening our own shop, building a team and seeing thousands of people enjoy what we make.
Being part of The Revo’s felt like an opportunity to celebrate that journey, but also to show what can happen when independent businesses are given the opportunity to take a chance, test an idea and grow.
What makes your entry standout?
We think it’s the journey and how quickly everything has grown, while still feeling like us. We started small, with a 1.5m x 1m pink kiosk and a lot of ambition. What happened next genuinely surprised us. We went from selling around 300 cookies a weekend to more than 3,000, launched our cookie van, opened our first shop and production kitchen in Portsmouth and have grown our team to eight people. Our social media has grown by 317%, with more than one million views along the way. But what we’re probably proudest of is that our story has helped open doors for other local independents. Our success at Gunwharf Quays helped demonstrate the demand for local businesses in major retail destinations, which led to further investment in kiosks for other independents to have the same opportunity we were given.
We’re still a small family business at heart. We just happen to be making a lot more cookies now!
How do you envision the future of your industry, and how do you hope to contribute to it?
We’d love to see a future where independent businesses have more opportunities to sit alongside established national and international brands.
Taking on a traditional shop can be a huge leap when you’re a small business. Our experience showed us how valuable it can be to start smaller, prove the concept and grow from there. The kiosk at Gunwharf Quays gave us the opportunity to test ourselves in a major retail destination without having to take that huge first step straight away.
We hope we can contribute simply by continuing to grow Baked By Sweet Tooth, creating local jobs, supporting other independent businesses and sharing what we’ve learnt. If our journey gives another small business the confidence to take an opportunity that once felt out of reach, we’d be incredibly proud of that.
What one word best summarises your entry?
Growth.