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The University of Alabama at Birmingham Collat School of Business is partnering with the Alabama Retail Association to present the 33rd annual Retail Day at a Sept. 23 awards luncheon.
Gov. Robert Bentley will offer the keynote address at the event, which will be held at Vestavia Country Club.
Retailers representing 13 businesses based in Andalusia, Birmingham, Gulf Shores, Homewood, Huntsville, Mountain Brook, Opp and Vestavia Hills will be honored as 2014 Retailers of the Year. A panel of judges with representatives from the media, chambers of commerce, retail developers, former Retailers of the Year and the academic community selected this year’s Retailers of the Year from a pool of nearly 70 Alabama retailers. Recipients have demonstrated a blend of sound business practices along with commitment to their communities, customers and employees. The levels of the individual awards will be announced at the awards luncheon.
The Retailers of the Year honorees are:
- Frederick W. “Ricky” Bromberg, Bromberg & Co. Inc., Birmingham and Mountain Brook
- Ricky Brooks, Express Oil Change and Tire Engineers, 216 locations in the Southeast, including 100 in Alabama, Birmingham-based
- David and Laura Darby, Darby’s Village Pharmacy Inc., Andalusia
- Carole Griffin, Continental Bakery and Chez Lulu, Mountain Brook, and Continental Bakery Downtown, Birmingham
- Carla Hamilton, Four Corners Gallery, Birmingham
- Jan Jacks, Dreamcakes Bakery, Birmingham
- Tracy and George Jones, Century Automotive Group, Huntsville
- Mike LeCroix, The Orchard Apple Specialist, formerly LifeBytes Apple Specialist, Gulf Shores
- Betsy McAtee and the managers of Dreamland Holding Co. LLC, Birmingham, Huntsville, Mobile, Northport and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, as well as Norcross and Roswell, Georgia
- Marco and Elan Morosini, Silvertron Café, Birmingham
- Dave Quinn and Joe Blaszczak, Publix Super Markets – Vestavia Hills
- Joe Richburg, J.R.’s Lawnmower Shop, Opp
- Dink and Suzanne Taylor, Fleet Feet Sports in Huntsville
Together, the businesses being honored operate in 48 Alabama cities and 13 states. They employ more than 1,500 workers in Alabama alone.
Alabama’s Retail Day began in 1982 at the University of Alabama’s main campus in Tuscaloosa. In 2006, Alabama Retail Day moved to Birmingham under the direction of the Retail Excellence Initiative within the UAB Collat School of Business. This will be the ninth year UAB has hosted the program to make students aware of the many and varied career opportunities offered in retail while at the same time promoting retailing in Alabama.