Mon 18th Nov 2024 - Restaurant Marketer & Innovator Awards 2025 finalists revealed Restaurant Marketer & Innovator Awards 2025 finalists revealed: Finalists have been announced for the seventh Restaurant Marketer & Innovator Awards, staged by Propel and Think Hospitality to recognise success in marketing and innovation in the foodservice sector. A panel of industry leaders and previous winners judged the entries at the Lucky Saint pub in London’s Devonshire Street. The finalists are: Best Community or Charity Initiative: Lexington Catering (for The Green Force), Young’s Pubs (for support the rugby love with Wooden Spoon), Hospitality Rides, KAM, Fleet Street, Natural Selection Design, Licensed Trade Charity and Only A Pavement Away (for Hospitality Rides); Best Digital Engagement: Harry Ramsden’s (TikTok launch with Kitch), Snowflake Gelato (Snow Mango campaign with Joli), Bill’s Restaurants, Dot.vu, Spin, TLC (The Loyalty Co) and Airship (for kids eat free campaign), Fulham Shore, Dream Quickly, Tom Jennings and Fleet Street (for FrancoMancaGlassGate reactive campaign), The Big Table Group and Pretty Pragmatic (for Pretty Pragmatic x Frankie & Benny’s), The Alchemist Bars & Restaurants (for social media – engagement strategy); Best New Product Development: Cream’s Café and Kith&Kind (for Savoury Hot Pockets – Cream’s Café), Ole & Steen (for maple and pecan social), JKS Restaurants (for Gymkhana Fine Foods), The Alchemist Bars & Restaurants, ACA Live, Crop45, Vapour, Discarded Spirits and Tony’s Chocolonely (for The Banana Split – a sustainable cocktail), BreadTalk Group (for Din Tai Fung craft lager), Lexington Catering (for The Mindful Kitchen), Marugame Udon (for Marugame’s new “Udonuts”); Best New Website: Mission Mars and Ignite Agency (for Albert’s Schloss website), Boston Tea Party and Pretty Pragmatic (for Boston Tea Party website), Mission Mars and Ignite Agency (for Rudy’s Pizza website), Chopstix’s Flavour Cravers new website launch with Fleet Street, Pizza Pilgrims and George Kerridge (for Pizza Pilgrims website relaunch), ETM Group/Sport London and Engage Interactive (for Sport London launch), Maximal Concepts and Wisetiger (for Mott 32 website), Thai Leisure Group and Wisetiger (for Chaophraya website), Folly Road e-commerce website with Wisetiger; Best New/Improved Visual Identity: The Big Table Group and Dapple Studio (for Banana Tree 2.0), The Big Table Group (for Frankie & Benny’s rebrand), Rosa’s Thai, Quadrant Design and Boxclever Consulting (for Rosa’s 2.0), Stonegate Group and Natural Selection Design (for Social Pub & Kitchen), ETM Collection (for ETM Group & Maven Leisure to ETM Collection); Best Use of Research, Insight or Data: Fuller’s (for Food Concepts), Snowflake Gelato (for Snow Mango campaign with Joli), Stonegate Group, Pitch Marketing Group and Tangible Market Research (for MiXR students launch campaign), Heartwood Inns (for understanding our guests better through research, insight and data), Young’s (for the Sunday Best campaign), Elior UK (for The Street Kitchen Collective: Boho Bowls and Roti Movement); Best Use of Technology: Bubble CiTea and Vita Mojo (for Bubble CiTea), Honest Burgers and Vita Mojo (for Honest Burgers: order management system), Bone Daddies, Pepper HQ, Airship and Keso Design Agency (for Bone Daddies app launch), The Salad Project and Vita Mojo (for The Salad Project: Spaces), Snowflake Gelato and Joli (for Snowflake Gelato Snow Mango campaign) Chopstix’s Flavour Cravers with Fleet Street, La Maritxu and Invyted (for 18,500 new followers in less than one month), Stonegate Group, Digitas Agency, The Access Group, Pitch Marketing Group, CDW, Samsung Coal Drops Yard, LDSK and Alight Media (for MiXR media network), Candid Hospitality (for the anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers), Folly Road (headless e-commerce with Wisetiger); Campaign of the Year: Mission Mars and Natural Selection Design (for Rudy’s Negroni month: a tee-shirt with benefits), Kibou, Airship/Toggle, Wireless Social and Feed it Back (for Passport to Japan), Burger & Lobster, Forty Eight Point One, Komodo and Full Fat (for Breaking Claws: World Lobster Day), Bill’s Restaurants, Spin Brands, TLC (The Loyalty Company), Dot.vu and Airship (for Bill’s Restaurants – Christmas 2023), The Alchemist Bars & Restaurants, Vapour, Absolut Vodka, Crop45 and Rachel Harrison Communications (for Summer of Screwball), Greene King, WPR and Brazen PR (for Flaming Grill’s Bringing Back the Heat), Stonegate Group and Pitch Marketing (for MiXR Together FC), The Big Table Group, Defiant, Serotonin, Egg Media PR (for Feel Bella by Bella Italia), Chopstix’s Flavour Cravers with Fleet Street, Marugame Udon Europe, W Communications, Eclectic Blue and Ignite (for Marugame Tantan Udon’s Unstoppable debut), Fuller’s (for Cask Ale: Only in the Pub), Ole & Steen (for Midsommar); Launch Campaign of the Year: Circe’s Rooftop Waterloo, Spaceman Marketing, AKA Communications, Mood Digital and Kiss Brand Agency (for Circe’s Rooftop Waterloo), JKS Restaurants (for Ambassadors Clubhouse) Seed: Big Impact, Tiny Budget with Sugar Snap Agency, JKS Restaurants (for BAO Battersea launch campaign), The Wolseley City and Bacchus PR (for The Wolseley City launch), Boojum Leeds and Pink Gorilla Hairy Lemon (for Boojum Leeds), BreadTalk Group (for Din Tai Fung craft lager), Heartwood Collection and Wentworth Communications (for bringing history to life at The White Hart, Lewes); Innovator of the Year: Martin Wolstencroft (co-founder and chief executive of Arc Inspirations), Ben McLaughlin (chief operating officer of Boxpark), Nico Simone (chief executive and founder of Six Company), Sue Walter (chief executive of The Roof Gardens), Chris Miller (founder and chief executive of White Rabbit Projects), Markus Thesleff (founder and chief executive of Thesleff Group); Marketer of the Year: Andre Johnstone, (sales and marketing director at Urban Pubs and Bars), Juliette Keyte (marketing director at Red Engine), Sam Bourke (Fuller’s marketing director), Kate Wall (KFC UK & Ireland marketing director), James Newman (Mission Mars marketing and sales director), Andreia Harwood (Wingstop marketing director), Simon Allison (Caprice Holdings head of marketing). Awards co-founder James Hacon said: “We’re excited to return for another year of the Restaurant Marketer & Innovator Awards. This year’s entries were truly next-level, highlighting innovation, impactful brand campaigns, and a stronger focus on commercial outcomes across various sectors of the industry. We look forward to celebrating with our finalists and announcing the winners in January, alongside the conference.” Propel managing director Paul Charity added: “These awards recognise the very best within the spheres of foodservice marketing and innovation – congratulations to all the finalists.” The Restaurant Marketer & Innovator Awards take place on Wednesday, 22 January at Piano Works in London’s Covent Garden. Tickets are £160 plus VAT per head and can be purchased by contacting Jo Charity at Propel on jo.charity@propelinfo.com.