At the gala dinner, attended by 1,100 guests, TV news star Sir Trevor McDonald presented an account of the life of the Bestway founder and chairman Sir Anwar Pervez.

He charted his journey from his school days in Pakistan, through his work as a bus driver in Bradford, where he saved the money to open his first shop, and the rise of Bestway from its opening in 1976 to become the UK's second largest cash and carry operator.

Sir Anwar paid tribute to the support he had received from his family, his colleagues and suppliers and, echoing the words of the Frank Sinatra song, said he had always done things his way.

Earlier in the month Bestway Group had published its financial results showing it made pre-tax profits of £73m, up from £57.3m the previous year, on turnover up 26% to £1.7bn. In its first full year since acquisition, Batleys contributed £566m to turnover and £8.2m in operating profits.

It also said it planned to open a Bestway depot in Edmonton, north London, in March, and a Batleys depot at Gillingham was scheduled to open in July.

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