Iceland Local Heroes Recognised in Queen’s Birthday Honours

Two Iceland store managers have been recognised by the Queen for their work to support local communities during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Casey Abbott, Manager of Iceland’s Thanet store, and Danny Burke, Manager of the West Belfast store, were named as Medallists of the Order of the British Empire (BEM) for their outstanding service to the retail industry.

Casey Abbott

The two managers kickstarted the supermarket’s ‘silver hours’ initiative and were the first to open their stores an hour early on Wednesdays, allowing elderly shoppers to buy their food and stay safe from the panic buying craze at the very start of the national lockdown.

Their move was a remarkable catalyst which saw all Iceland stores across the UK eventually adopting elderly shopper-only hours. This was then replicated across competitor supermarket stores nationwide.

Danny Burke

The news was warmly welcomed by Iceland Managing Director Richard Walker, who said: “We have seen many heroic acts from our colleagues serving their communities throughout the pandemic but it’s fantastic to hear two of our incredible store managers have now received this honour.

“These two managers are a credit to the business, and we are thankful for their service to their local communities and to the company. Both Casey and Daniel have pioneered an initiative that helped Iceland protect its most vulnerable shoppers at a critical time and their recognition in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List is thoroughly deserved”.