Dewlay, the third generation Lancashire cheesemakers based in Garstang, Lancashire are thrilled to have picked up “best in class” in the Lancashire Producers and Makers category.
The announcement was made at a glittering event held on Thursday 9th November in the magnificent Blackpool Tower Ballroom; with Headline Sponsor University of Central Lancashire and Host Sponsor VisitBlackpool leading the way, in support of the only county-wide celebration of Lancashire tourism.
The annual awards, organised by Marketing Lancashire, was attended by over 500 guests who enjoyed a superb Lancashire-inspired dinner before Chair of the Board of Marketing Lancashire, Tony Attard OBE DL introduced this year’s guest presenter, the Burnley-born journalist and presenter of Drive on BBC Radio 5 Live, Tony Livesey.
Ruth Connor, Chief Executive of Marketing Lancashire in her opening speech said
“A thriving visitor economy makes such a difference to a place and the latest annual visitor figures to Lancashire are now at a record-breaking 67 million. With these visitors spending over £4.1billion and with almost 60 thousand people now employed in tourism, we have a great deal to celebrate and look forward to together.
“This is a fantastic industry to work in with so many opportunities and we all need to encourage more young people to choose careers in tourism. We have so many talented individuals and teams who run businesses but also the level of investment that is going into continuing to raise our game, is giving Lancashire real stand out as a destination and as a place to work.
“I believe we have the people, the products and above all else, the right attitude to get this county noticed and appreciated. We have a lot to achieve to get to our goal of 70million annual visitors by 2020 but with collaboration, partnership working, with ambition and confidence, and with our true Lancashire spirit we will definitely get there.”
Nick Kenyon, Dewlay’s Managing Director commented , “this award has really just capped what’s been an exciting 60thyear for us in business. It’s a real “pat on the back” for the entire team here at Dewlay and encourages us all to continue the work promoting Lancashire cheese as one of the world’s best”.
