Metro Bank – the dog-friendly high street bank – has proved it is top dog by winning an award in the Kennel Club’s prestigious Open for Dogs Competition 2011.
The bank, which leads the way in its approach to welcoming dog-loving customers into its stores, was nominated by the public in the annual competition’s ‘High Street’ category, beating other well-known high street businesses to scoop this top award, which will be presented to them in a ceremony at Discover Dogs at Earls Court, London, on 12-13 November.
Metro Bank’s appreciation of their canine-loving customers has paid off, as dozens of nominations flooded in to support the bank each day, helping them to beat the stiff competition. One member of the public who nominated Metro Bank commented on its ‘refreshing way of doing business’ which helped to secure nominations.
The bank, with branches in locations including Fulham, Croydon, Bromley and Borehamwood, joined businesses up and down the country to compete for an accolade in this year’s competition, and with over 10,000 canine-canny businesses listed on the Open for Dogs website – powered by Dog Friendly – the competition was fiercely fought.
Craig Donaldson, CEO of Metro Bank, said: “We are thrilled to have won a Kennel Club Open for Dogs Award! At Metro Bank our mantra is ‘Dogs Rule’ and we always provide water bowls and dog treats for man’s best friend in all of our branches, as we appreciate that the millions of dog owners in the UK are looking for places where dogs will be welcome. We are looking forward to collecting the award at Discover Dogs in November.”
Caroline Kisko, Communications Director at the Kennel Club, said: “Congratulations to Metro Bank. The winners of these awards are determined by the public, who recognise that Metro Bank is willing to go above and beyond for its customers and that dog-friendly businesses are an important part of the British high street. Metro Bank is a fine example of the many companies and organisations that are reaping the benefits of a dog-friendly door policy in terms of creating a welcome atmosphere, as well as helping to secure itself financially by widening its customer base.”
The Kennel Club’s Open for Dogs campaign aims to break down barriers for man’s best friend by encouraging more businesses to be dog-friendly. This is supported by research released by the Kennel Club that shows that a staggering four out of five businesses claim that their dog friendly policy has helped them to draw in more customers in difficult financial times.¹
The Kennel Club has also found that 95 percent of people think more businesses and locations should be Open for Dogs, and that dogs improve the atmosphere of a place², and 77 percent think that dogs help to reduce stress.³
The Open for Dogs Competition is in its fourth year and the public were invited to nominate places that they thought were pulling out the stops to accommodate our canine companions with innovative services or simply a bowl of clean water and the promise of a friendly smile. The categories were: Somewhere on the HIGH STREET; Somewhere to SLEEP; Somewhere to DRINK; Somewhere to EAT; Somewhere to VISIT; Somewhere to WORK; Somewhere to HOLIDAY and CARE HOMES.
The winners of the Open for Dogs competition will receive their prizes at the Kennel Club’s Discover Dogs event, on 12-13 November at Earls Court, London.
Notes to Editors
¹Based on the Kennel Club Open for Dogs Business Survey which was conducted in June – July 2009. There were a total of 181 responses. ²Based on the Kennel Club Out and About with Your Dog Survey conducted in July 2008 which involved more than 1,000 participants. ³Based on research for the Kennel Club carried out online by Opinion Matters* between 13/10/2009 and 21/10/2009 amongst a nationally representative sample of 530 UK adults who own dogs. *Opinion Matters adheres to and follows the codes of the MRS (Market Research Society) and is fully registered and compliant with the Data Protection Registrar.