Contact event manager
North American Office Products Awards Shortlist 2019
Business Product of the Year
- Fellowes Brands – The Lotus RT
- Kensington – LD4650P Universal USB-C Dock with K-Fob™ Smart Lock
- Dri Mark Products – Flash Test Counterfeit Detector
- ChargeTech – ChargeTech S10 Power Floor Stand Charging Station
- ChargeTech – ChargeTech Pin Code & Pin Code Video Charging Lockers PPL8/PPLV8
- 3M Scotch(TM) – Flex & Seal Shipping Roll
Innovation of the Year
- ACCO Brands Inc – Foton 30, Automated Pouch-Free Laminator
- ChargeTech – ChargeTech 124.800mAh Portable Power Station 124K
- ChargeTech – ChargeTech S10 Power Floor Stand Charging Station
- ChargeTech – ChargeTech Pin Code & Pin Code Video Charging Lockers PPL8/PPLV8
- Acme United – First Aid Only SafetyHub App and SmartCompliance First Aid
- 3M Scotch(TM) – Flex & Seal Shipping Roll
The winners will be announced at the SP Richards ABC in San Diego, California, on Friday 9th August 2019
The People’s Choice is an award chosen from the top scoring products from the North American Office Products Awards 2019. These are exceptional products have delighted the judges and now it is up to you to choose your favourite.
The winner of the People’s Choice award will be announced at the SP Richards’ ABC in San Diego, California on 9 August 2019. It is a real honour to win this award so make sure you vote and help us reward a great product!
You only have two votes so choose wisely.
Enter the North American Office Products Awards 2019 (NAOPA)
This exciting programme rewards the very best vendors and dealers operating in North America.
The NAOPA were launched in 2010 by Office Products International (OPI) magazine in association with SP Richards Company. Now in their tenth year, these awards now set the industry standard and aim to find the best products and leading dealers in the industry.
Free to enter
There is no charge to enter the awards so don’t miss this free marketing opportunity. You don’t have to be an SP Richards vendor or dealer – you just need to operate in North America to qualify so you have nothing to lose!
Simple to enter
There is just a simple online entry process to complete.
Award categories
There will be six awards presented at the NAOPA 2019:
- Business Product of the Year
- Innovation of the Year
- People’s Choice
- Young Executive of the Year
- Professional of the Year
- Industry Achievement
For more details see Categories.
Raise your profile with your customers
SP Richards’ ABC is the largest annual event for North American dealers and attracts more than 3,000 attendees every year. A panel of senior resellers will review every entry so this is your chance to get your product in front of the people who count.
The winners and shortlisted companies will raise their profiles to all ABC attendees as winners will be announced at show. Shortlisted products will be further profiled during the ABC EXPO, bringing greater visibility and recognition to winners and finalists, and additional signage will be displayed within vendor booths.
If that’s not enough to convince you to enter, the shortlist will be announced in a special feature in OPI magazine, Independent Dealer and on OPI.net and this will be followed by additional coverage of the winners by OPI. Award winners will therefore receive the highest recognition among their customers.
Do I need to be an SP vendor or dealer?
If you are not an existing SP vendor or dealer you are still invited to enter the NAOPA and, if you are shortlisted, attend the ABC. We will contact you nearer the time to make arrangements for this.
More information
If you would like to receive any more information on the awards, judges, categories or entry procedures just contact us directly.
Make sure that you enter now and raise your profile in the independent dealer community.
Contact details:
Janet Bell
Director
Office Products International
janet.bell@opi.net
Tel: 011 44 20 7841 2941
Categories
There will be six awards presented at the NAOPA 2019.
There are three vendor categories and three dealer categories.
- Business Product of the Year
- Product Innovation of the Year
- People’s Choice
- Young Executive of the Year
- Professional of the Year
- Industry Achievement
Categories in detail:
Professional of the Year
You are invited to nominate the best talent you have encountered in the industry. This may be an employee from your organisation who has had a significant impact on growth, productivity and morale. It could be a business owner who is growing their business, using innovative techniques and really making a difference both in the industry and their community. Alternatively, you can nominate an exceptional executive working for a customer, supplier or partner. What we are looking for is an outstanding executive who has the potential to influence the future of the independent dealer channel.
Industry Achievement Award
This award seeks to recognise the achievement of a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the office products industry over the course of their career in OP. This inspirational individual may have been instrumental in the success of an organisation, or has helped advance the dealer channel in North America through their dedication and commitment.
Young Executive of the Year
The business supplies industry needs young and dynamic individuals to ensure its continued success. This is your chance to reward a young executive (35 or under) who is making a real impact in their business and maybe the sector too. We are looking for individuals that are not only making a difference where they work but are also taking part in the wider OP community. This may be through associations, charities or dealer organisations. You can nominate a colleague, customer or you can enter yourself.
To enter you must be:
- 35 or under
- Currently in a leadership position within a dealership in the IDC
- Must have made significant, demonstrable changes to improve the dealership – could be sales, operations, technology, etc. Please provide examples
- Ideally, you have become involved in the wider dealer community, for example through their dealer group, wholesaler, community or charity
Business Product of the Year
We will be looking for the best product in any vertical. This category is open to products from Core OP, FBS, MRO, Furniture, Education, EOS or any category that is available to sell in the business products channel. It might be a new product or one that has delivered strong revenue for many years. We want to see excellent product development and value for customers.
The judges will be looking for:
- Product innovation, design and functionality
- If it is an existing product, how it has improved upon previous designs/models
- The benefits for the reseller and the consumer
- The level of marketing support, innovation and initiatives in promoting the products to the end-user
- Excellent supporting content, especially video
Innovation of the Year
Nothing determines the success of any industry more than innovation. It is the lifeblood of our sector and without it we become commoditised. These awards seek to discover the truly innovative products and ensure they receive the recognition they deserve. “Innovations” can include products, technology solutions, significant enhancements or supply chain innovations.
The judges will be looking for:
- Functionality
- Design
- Originality
- Potential to generate revenue
- Excellent supporting marketing material and content, especially video
The product must have been launched in the last two years.
People’s Choice
You cannot enter this award directly. The shortlisted products from the above categories are automatically entered into this award and the winner is chosen by a public vote. This will give all resellers the chance to vote from the shortlist for their choice for the product of the year. So if you would like to win this award make sure you enter one of the above product categories.
The Entry Process
- The North American Office Products Awards are open to any companies or individuals headquartered in North America or with a physical presence in North America.
- The manufacturing process, where applicable, can take place elsewhere but the company must have a real presence in the North America.
- You can enter as many categories as you wish.
- You may enter the same category multiple times.
- The deadline for entries is 19 April 2019 for both the vendor and the dealer awards
- Please complete the online entry form by answering all the questions listed, providing as much relevant information as possible.
- Only information provided on the entry form will be sent to the judges.
- Entries are treated in the strictest confidence.
- Judges will not be allowed to adjudicate in any category where they may have a conflict of interest.
The Judging Process
- The judges reserve the right to switch submissions between categories if they feel it is appropriate.
- The judges may decide not to bestow an award in a particular category.
- The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
- The shortlist will be announced by 15 June 2019.
- Winners will be announced at the SP Richards’ 2018 Advantage Business Conference (ABC) from 07-10th August 2019 in San Diego.
