MAHWAH, N.J. — Jaguar Land Rover North America LLC announced the 14 winners of the 2016/17 Marque of Distinction awards for top-performing individuals, by position, across the Jaguar Land Rover North America retailer network.

The Marque of Distinction is the highest individual retail employee honor within the company’s Journey to Excellence retailer reward and recognition program.

“We are thrilled to present these outstanding individuals with the Marque of Distinction award for their exceptional performance and commitment to the Jaguar and Land Rover brands," said Joe Eberhardt, president and CEO of Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC. “We take immense pride in providing our customers with distinctive high-quality vehicles and excellent service, and their dedication to such key elements plays a large role in the continued success of both brands.”

The Marque of Distinction awards are given after a competition among North American retailer employees whom have already achieved Jaguar Land Rover Elite status within the company’s Guild and Manager Guild program. Eligibility for the Marque of Distinction final competition is determined by a combination of advanced training and performance metrics, which reflect staff and managers’ customer satisfaction milestones as well as technical, product and process knowledge.

The winners of the Jaguar 2016/17 Marque of Distinction awards are:

• George Lashoff, Jaguar Parts Manager, Jaguar Albany

• Kenneth Snay, Jaguar Sales Manager, THE COLLECTION

• William Kenny, Jaguar Service Manager, Harper Jaguar

• Edward Lozier, Jaguar Technician, Jaguar Naples

• Robert Shipley, Jaguar Sales Consultant, Union Park Jaguar

• Mark Medina, Jaguar Parts Professional, Jaguar Mission Viejo

• Nicholas Eichhorn, Jaguar Service Advisor, Stevinson Imports, Inc.

The winners of the Land Rover 2016/17 Marque of Distinction awards are:

• Chris Ehrat, Land Rover Parts Manager, Land Rover Rocklin

• Fidel Mayorga, Land Rover Sales Manager, Land Rover Palm Beach

• Marty Albanese, Land Rover Service Manager, Land Rover Ventura

• Shashi Shivashankara, Land Rover Sales Guide, Land Rover Shreveport

• Jason Gainous, Land Rover Technician, Land Rover West Ashley

• Rick Graham, Land Rover Service Advisors, Land Rover Frisco

• Diana Meza, Land Rover Parts Professional, Land Rover San Diego

Jaguar and Land Rover have a combined network of 206 retailers across the U.S. In 2016, Jaguar Land Rover sales increased 24% to a record 105,104 units sold for the two brands combined. Year to date through August, Jaguar Land Rover sales are up 13 percent in the U.S., ahead of the 2016 record sales year pace.