A co-operative colleague in Lenham has been named Sales Assistant of the Year 2020 by one of the industry’s leading magazines.

Jo Bate who works at The Co-operative Food – Lenham was announced as the winner last night in the 2020 Convenience Store Awards.

The awards ceremony was hosted online by TV presenter Konnie Huq as Jo was watching live from her sofa whilst video calling her store manager.

Jo, who has worked in the Lenham store in Faversham Road since it opened in 2016, said: “Both of us cried when we heard. It was such a special moment.

“Even before the night, the experience had already been incredibly lovely as I’d had customers coming and telling me how much I deserved it.”

Jo, who has mobility issues and suffers with a degenerative disease which affects some of her joints, has previously described her ‘love’ for working in the village where she has lived with her family for the past 20 years.

To get through to the finals, there was an in-depth three stage judging process looking at entries from retailers across the country.

Gill Kenward, Store Manager Training Mentor at The Co-operative Food – Lenham, said: “Jo is an outstanding Customer Sales Assistant and she is also an inspiration to anyone who is living with a serious health condition.

“She is in pain and discomfort a lot of the time but never ever complains. And you forget that she has difficulty walking because she doesn’t allow it to define her. We couldn’t be more thrilled for Jo and we will hopefully do something in store soon to celebrate.”

One of Southern Co-op’s Welcome franchises in West Sussex was also shortlisted in the awards.

Welcome Southwater, which opened in January 2019, was shortlisted for Best New Store in the awards after the 2,600 sqft store was transformed from a previous car showroom.

To find out more about Southern Co-op’s employment opportunities, visit www.southernco-opjobs.co.uk/jobs/. Or to find out more about Southern Co-op’s franchise opportunities, visit www.southernco-op.co.uk/food/franchise.