Three outstanding professionals from the US independent dealer community were honoured at the North American Office Products Awards (NAOPA) on Saturday evening at the SP Richards ABC show in Washington DC.
Following the NAOPA vendor awards that were presented on Thursday, it was the turn of the dealer community to be in the spotlight on the final evening of ABC, with three awards up for grabs, including one new category.
That new category was Young Executive of the Year, introduced to recognise outstanding young talent in the business supplies industry. The first winner of this award was Rosemary Czopek, President of California reseller Gorilla Stationers. Aged just 33, she founded Gorilla Stationers four years ago and has grown it into a major force, employing a staff of 18 with a facility of more than 15,000 sq ft (1,500 sq m).
The second award, Professional of the Year, aims to recognise the brightest established talent in the industry. This year, this award went to Bob Shulman, President of north-east dealer Suburban Stationers. Not only has Shulman helped the company to triple in size over the past ten years, but he is also a board member of NOPA and a founding member of TriMega’s NEXT committee.
The third and final award of the evening was Industry Achievement, presented to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the office products industry over the course of their career.
In a moving speech, Melissa Morris of North Carolina dealer Hoyle Office Solutions introduced her mother, company President and CEO Kathy Hoyle, as the recipient of this year’s award, following in the footsteps of illustrious industry figures including Jim Hebert, Bud Mundt and Chip Hummel.
Congratulations to all the winners on their well-deserved awards.
Read a full report of the NAOPA in the September issue of OPI magazine.
Washington (DC), USA
