2016 OMA Award Winners

A.R.E./POPAI recently announced the 2016 Outstanding Marketing at Retail Achievement award winners. Showcased here are the Display of the Year, Creative Award and Budget Award winners with commentary from Shopper Marketing Hall of Famer Joe Ricci.Display of the Year AwardTEMPORARYJack Daniel’s Holiday Stave TreeEntrant: Bish Creative Display, Lake Zurich, IllinoisClient: ImageSeller, DenverRicci: “As a longtime friend of Jack and Old No. 7, I have to admit that this stave unit intrigues me, but it’s not one of my favorite Jack Daniel’s displays. Maybe it’s because I just hate to see any of Jack’s barrels not filled with his whiskey. I actually think I’m just not seeing this as a Christmas tree by any stretch of my imagination. No green (except for the wreath, which looks out of place at the top), no ornaments, no trimmings and no visible image to the landmark square Jack Daniel’s bottle.”SEMI-PERMANENTChateau Ste. Michelle High Tier Barrel RackEntrant: Ruszel Woodworks Inc., Benicia, CaliforniaClient: Chateau Ste. Michelle, Woodinville, WashingtonRicci: “A vintage look perfectly produced! This beautiful wooden display does a superior job of presenting the featured products in a variety of positions and sizes typical of a winery tasting room display. This is so nicely done I suspect some of these displays have become prized home wine racks when their in-store life was over.”PERMANENTSherwin-Williams ColorSnap StudioEntrant: Innovative Marketing Solutions Inc., Schaumburg, IllinoisClient: The Sherwin-Williams Co., ClevelandRicci: “It’s agony having to go to some home center or paint store with your spouse and spend literally hours selecting the colors he/she wants (and that you’ll agree to). This Sherwin-Williams fixture makes a big part of the pain go away by organizing the process to a great degree. It features major ‘base’ colors on the front of the panels to help narrow the selection process and provides a wide array of tints and complementary shades on smaller, take-home color chips when you simply turn the panels around. My only problem is this system blows away any case I had that white can be used everywhere.”Creative AwardTEMPORARYAnheuser-Busch OcultoEntrant: Rapid Displays, ChicagoClient: Anheuser-Busch, St. LouisRicci: “For long-distance ‘stopping power’ and ‘what the heck is that stuff’ attention-grabbing, this one ranks up there with the best. While the basic corrugated structure of this floor unit is solid and holds all the weight of the bottles, it is the skull logo and name that grabbed my attention from the far end of the beer aisle. When I got closer and the eyes lit up, it was awesome and so naturally spooky-looking (even when they were not lit). There was no wisp of smoke (which the display was supposed to release), but the display was positioned in a high-traffic aisle so that element may have been exhausted by then.”SEMI-PERMANENTHendrick’s Luggage Trunk DisplayEntrant: InnerWorkings, ChicagoClient: William Grant & Sons Inc., Bellshill, North Lanarkshire, ScotlandRicci: “This display does an excellent job of mimicking French luggage brands and it uses various materials both internally and externally to provide a superior image as well as substantial holding power. The interior design and shelves are nicely decorated and well-supported to handle the product weight and, hopefully, many retail reloads so it gets an ‘A’ for design and construction. What I don’t get is the connection between the product and the luggage theme. ‘Sell’ copy or a graphic presentation (like a full-color header) explaining this concept would have enhanced the entire display.”PERMANENTBourbon Revival In-Store ExperienceEntrant: Bish Creative Display, Lake Zurich, IllinoisClient: Beam Suntory, Deerfield, IllinoisRicci: “Seeing this incredible series of displays arrayed together, I can well imagine that this is what the gates of heaven look like to dedicated bourbon drinkers. The rich woods, the faux fire for charring, the antiqued metal fixtures make an elegant case for the reason bourbon drinkers are such a select, well-bred group of gentlemen who relish tradition and fine-aged American whiskey. Here’s to the retailer with enough style and fortitude to devote this much floor space to such a noble cause.”Budget AwardTEMPORARYMars Halloween CoffinEntrant: The Central Group, Mississauga, Ontario, CanadaClient: Mars Chocolate North AmericaRicci: “I must have seen this ‘coffin’ more than a hundred times in case stack displays, hanging from the ceiling support frame, taped to endcaps, and any number of instances limited only by the imagination of retail store associates. For a relatively low-budget piece, Mars got a huge bang for its buck in grocery, mass and drug outlets due to the fun nature of the Yellow M&M’s character and the ease of adaptability of the coffin to almost any display set up on the store floor.”SEMI-PERMANENTAir Wick Life Scents Fragrance CompactsEntrant: Mechtronics, Beacon, New YorkClient: RB, Parsippany-Troy Hills, New JerseyRicci: “These modular units provide several key elements to the Life Scents introduction program. First, they are adaptable to virtually any retail situation (shelf, peg board, endcap) in any class of trade. Next, they quickly identify the product and give a full view of its size and shape, and then they top it off by allowing shoppers to ‘sample’ the various fragrances with a simple ‘lift’ of a decorated cap that activates the scented sample device.”PERMANENTCoffee House Cafe Counter DisplayEntrant: SMP In-Store Marketing Solutions, Chattanooga, TennesseeClient: McKee Foods, Collegedale, TennesseeRicci: “While I love the product packages, which are superbly done, I think they actually create a problem by overwhelming the displays, especially the floor unit. The counter unit is fairly benign and the product packages carry the story and shopper interest because they are close at hand. The floor display needs to be seen from a greater distance, and the key selling feature (the baked goods) isn’t distinct enough to be instantly recognizable from eight feet away, particularly as new, unknown products."

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