ONLINE white goods supplier AO.com has picked up a gong for outstanding customer service at the Oracle Retail Week Awards.

The Middlebrook-based firm was also highly commended in the best marketing and advertising campaign category.

The annual awards see leading names in the UK retail sector come together to celebrate the industry.

AO.com’s mission statement is “everything we do revolves around our dedication to happiness and amazing customer service”.

It beat competition from a shortlist which included Asos, Argos and B&Q.

The entry was reviewed by a jury made up of influential figures and experts from the independent retail sector which included Asda chief executive Andy Clarke, House of Frazer chief executive John King, Anne Summers managing director Vanessa Gold, Tesco’s UK managing director Chris Bush, John Lewis managing director Andy Street and Stephen Robertson, of the British Retail Consortium.

AO.com chief executive John Roberts says he takes personal interest in any “thank you” or negative comments posted by customers via the brand’s Facebook site or contact centre, personally ensuring customers receive a bespoke letter of thanks or apology from him.

“We take every step possible to ensure our customers have the best experience possible when they shop with us,” he said.

“As a collective, we understand our customers are the reason why we come into work every day and they deserve to be central to our strategy. We are unreasonable in the level of service we expect our customers to receive and treat them with the respect they deserve.

“Every part of our operation has been geared around making sure we keep our customers happy.

“To have been recognised on this prestigious platform as not only the best for customer service in the electrical retail sector, but also across the entire retail industry, both on and offline, is a truly proud moment for the team. It was the one award we really wanted to win.”