Six suppliers recognized at UGI's annual awards dinner

Leaders from the Canadian grocery industry turned out on Oct. 24 for United Grocers Inc.'s (UGI)  annual dinner and awards ceremony at the Toronto Congress Centre.

And UGI had much to celebrate.

"2019 will be another successful year for UGI members," Michael Forgione, UGI chair and COO at Longo's, told attendees, adding that UGI retailers' total sales for the year will be more than $38 billion, a "remarkable" figure bolstered by organic growth and through acquisitions, including more than 100 new suppliers in the last five years.

"The future looks very optimistic but consumers' appetites continue to change," said Forgione. "Being relevant is critically important to success in this market--relevance drives change. We need more than ever to stay connected together to exceed consumers' needs so we can continue to grow."

UGI president Denis Gendron also spoke of the 47-year-old organization's growth. "UGI is growing. It has great momentum," said Gendron. "The addition of new members and many new stores represent opportunities for growth of all of our UGI suppliers, and for UGI it's also representing the potential to create new partnerships."

The theme of this year's event was "Momentum '19 - Working Together and Winning Together" and UGI recognized six of its suppliers for outstanding work and service:

Best Innovative Supplier of 2019: McCormick Canada

Best Grocery Supplier of 2019: Unilever Canada

Best Fresh Department Supplier of 2019: Jan K. Overweel

Best Service and Equipment Supplier of 2019: True Refrigeration

Best Private Label Supplier of 2019: Jadsco Importing

Exceptional Retailer Service 2019: Sigma Stretch Film

Check out photos from the event below: