Geoff Helisma Over the years the Spar Maclean Supermarket has made a habit of winning customer service awards. Last week the store was named as Spar’s eastern region Store of the Year, Grocery Department of the Year and Produce Department of the Year. But it was the store of the year award that most excited the store’s proprietor, Bob Little. “We’ve never won this one before,” he said. The store won two national awards last year, too: the Produce Department of the Year and Customer Service Excellence Award. Mr Little said the completion of renovations in February/March went a long way towards winning the regional store of the year award. “Without doing those renovations and making major changes, we would never have been considered; it’s an honour to be in that position now,” he said. Mr Little said that store judging throughout the country involves Spar’s business manager visiting on regular basis and assessing all aspects of each store’s operations. “Occupational health and safety is a big issue, as is legal compliance,” he said.