­­­Adelaide's Bridgestone Select West Lakes has been named Australia's best store, clinching the title of National Franchise of the Year for 2019 in Bridgestone's annual MasterClass awards program.

The MasterClass program saw Bridgestone Select stores all around Australia assessed throughout the year on safety practices, environmental compliance, store presentation, sales process, sales performance, and customer experience.

With outstanding performance in all areas over the 12 months, Tony Lawrie's West Lakes store proved itself across all categories to claim the top prize, being rewarded with a trip to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, hosted by franchisor and Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner Bridgestone. 

"I'm lost for words and in shock about being named National Franchise of the Year," Tony Lawrie said.

"It's a huge credit to my team. This is really their award and recognition for them always putting the customer first.

"We take great pride in our customer service and we're thrilled to be recognised with this award," Mr Lawrie added.

In the NSW/ACT market, Bridgestone Select Tuggerah recorded back-to-back victories for Ashley McDougall, adding to his outstanding MasterClass form to claim his fifth state win since 2013 across his group of stores.

The success continued for Ashley and his team, with Bridgestone Service Centre Thornton named as the top performing commercial business store - winning the national title of Commercial Business Retail Dealer of the Year, as well as NSW/ACT's best Service Centre.

Bridgestone Select Moonah and Peter Killick claimed the title of best store in VIC/TAS for the second time in three years, while QLD's top spot was awarded to Bridgestone Select Hervey Bay and Stephen Thorn. In WA, it was success for Bridgestone Select Success and Richard Eden.

"Our MasterClass program recognises and rewards our network for the dedication they put into ensuring Bridgestone customers receive the best possible experience," said Bridgestone Australia & New Zealand Managing Director, Stephen Roche.

"Congratulations to Tony Lawrie and the team at Bridgestone Select West Lakes on being named 2019 Franchise of the Year, along will all our state winners across the Bridgestone Select and Bridgestone Service Centre networks.

"Our stores are the face of Bridgestone throughout Australia, and MasterClass showcases the great work they do in delivering exceptional customer service."

In the Bridgestone Service Centre category, Bridgestone Service Centre Bundaberg East clinched the QLD award for Steven Bennier, with Bridgestone Service Centre Ballarat taking out the VIC/TAS accolade under the leadership of Justin Doherty.

The SA/NT region was won by Bridgestone Service Centre Mildura and Linc Howard, with the store overseen by South Australian representatives, and Bridgestone Service Centre Bullsbrook winning the WA award for Ryan Lancaster.

Three stores were inducted into the coveted Chairman's Club in 2019, recognising outstanding results across all four categories for the year within high-volume stores, with Peter Killick's Bridgestone Select Moonah, Scott Turnbull and Richard Hilder's Bridgestone Select Hobart, and Stephen Thorn's Bridgestone Select Noosaville also initiated.

Stephen Thorn's impressive MasterClass form also saw his Bridgestone Select Hervey Bay and Bridgestone Select Nambour stores qualify for Platinum Club, along with Tony Lawrie's Bridgestone Select West Lakes, and Garth Pettersen's Bridgestone Select Keperra store.

According to Bridgestone Australia's Sales Director, Heath Barclay, the benchmark continues to advance each year.

"MasterClass has continued to evolve over the years to push our stores to go above and beyond expectations for our customers, and this year's results highlight the calibre of stores in our network," Mr Barclay said.

"We saw a number of stores claim their first success, and some repeat winners, which shows that the competition for the title is strong, and ultimately it's our customers that are the winners." 

Bridgestone has revamped its store recognition program in 2020, with stores around Australia now contesting the DRIVE program.

-ENDS-

Bridgestone congratulates the 2019 MasterClass winners: