On 6 March 2018, the leading lights of the European business supplies industry will come together for the 17th time for the European Office Products Awards (EOPA).
And judging by the number and calibre of entries received, and the shortlist – see below – that was compiled during the judges meeting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in early December, it’s promising to be an unmissable event.
A total of 11 awards are up for grabs, rewarding anything from innovation, ingenuity and the ability to evolve and transform, to persistence, perseverance and sheer dedication. The winners of this year’s EOPA will be announced during a Presentation Dinner at the Hotel Okura in Amsterdam during the OPI Partnership event.
EOPA 2018 shortlist
Product of the Year
- ACCO Brands – Leitz MyBox
- COLOP – ARSI Motivational Stamps
- Fellowes Europe – Lotus Sit-Stand Workstation
- Floortex Europe – AFS-TEX 5000 Anti-Fatigue System
- Logitech – Spotlight
Video of the Year
- Dams – 50th Anniversary
- Krug & Priester – IDEAL Shredders: Quality
- Krug & Priester – IDEAL Shredders: Simplicity
- Newell Brands – InkJoy Gel TV Campaign
- VOW Europe – ‘It’s on the Way’
Wholesaler of the Year
- Exertis Supplies
- JGBM
- Quantore
- VOW Europe
Initiative of the Year
- Integra – Education Essentials Campaign
- Integra – The Local Community Initiative
- International Paper – HP Office ‘Pink Ream’ social campaign supporting breast cancer awareness
- VOW Europe – Reviva
Marketing Campaign of the Year
- BIC – #BICTEMPTATIONS
- Fellowes – Actively Working Well with the Sit-Stand Movement
- Newell Brands – Sharpie Campaign in France
- Pilot Pen France – Pilot Lens on Snapchat
- WPC – Obłędne Dyktando
Vendor of the Year
- 3M
- Bi-silque
- Fellowes Europe
- Newell Brands
- Safescan
Reseller of the Year – revenues under €100 million
- Codex
- Commercial
- Gerdmans
- Officeday
Reseller of the Year – revenues over €100 million
- Amazon
- Bureau Vallée
- Büromarkt Böttcher
- Lyreco
Young Executive of the Year
- Haley-mae Benton, Channel Sales Manager, Avery UK
- Abdul Khamkar, EU Merchandising Manager, Office Depot
- Steve Weston, Product Manager, Lyreco UK & Ireland
Professional of the Year & Industry Achievement
- No shortlist – winners announced on the night
Below is a short description of all the shortlisted products, initiatives, companies and individuals.
Wholesaler of the Year
Exertis Supplies
Exertis Supplies excels at being a service-oriented, low-cost, no frills wholesale distributor with excellent vendor and dealer partnerships.
JGBM
Highly skilled in and focused on all things e-commerce and digital, JGBM prides itself on its product expertise and on providing unrivalled value-added services to its dealer customers.
Quantore
A complete all-rounder working with extremely low margins. Quantore has an outstanding logistics infrastructure and excellent value-add service solutions.
VOW Europe
VOW Europe is one of the UK’s broadline wholesalers with an ever-growing product and service proposition. Particular emphasis is being put on the facilities supplies and furniture categories as well as on instant availability of stock through its Product Conveyor initiative.
Initiative of the Year
Integra – Education Essentials Campaign
This initiative set out to enable Integra members to approach and enter the education market with the right tools as well as the expertise to win new business.
Integra – The Local Community Initiative
Highlighting one of dealers’ core USPs – the personal touch – this initiative offered a chance to support the local community while also promoting dealers’ own businesses.
International Paper – HP Office ‘Pink Ream’
This initiative sought to raise awareness of and funds for a breast cancer organisation and highlight the use of brands to create social awareness.
VOW Europe – Reviva
Reviva is a range of CPO phones with a lower price and reduced environmental impact.
Marketing campaign of the Year
BIC – #BICTEMPTATIONS
A contemporary, European campaign that explored new ways of creating video content via crowdsourcing, with the aim to create brand awareness for BIC’s 4 Colours pen.
Fellowes – Actively Working Well with the Sit-Stand Movement
With the aim of launching Fellowes’ sit-stand category in Europe, the campaign sought to establish Fellowes as a thought leader and credible adviser in the wellness space.
Newell Brands – Sharpie Campaign in France
A very consumer-focused campaign that aimed to educate users about permanent marker usage and build awareness of the Sharpie brand in the French market.
Pilot Pen France – Pilot Lens on Snapchat
Pilot Pen’s campaign on Snapchat was specifically directed at school children in order to boost brand awareness of its FriXion range.
WPC – Obłędne Dyktando
Translated as ‘Fabulous Dictation’, this campaign in Poland combined an educational focus with the desire to engage teenagers in the joy of writing.
Product of the Year
ACCO Brands – Leitz MyBox
A range of modular, robust and dual-colour boxes in four colours that address the need for attractive storage solutions in the home as well as at work.
COLOP – ARSI Motivational Stamps
In a historically very traditional category, COLOP adds a new dimension with its selection of augmented reality 3D motivational stamps.
Fellowes Europe – Lotus Sit-Stand Workstation
With the growing well-being trend in mind, the Lotus Sit-Stand Workstation offers an integrated and seamless solution. Featuring 22 different height settings, users can work in a wide variety of positions.
Floortex Europe – AFS-TEX 5000 Anti-Fatigue System
Floortex’s flagship product within its new AFS-TEX range. The anti-fatigue system is designed to give ergonomic benefits to support the trend in stand-up working.
Logitech – Spotlight
Logitech’s Spotlight combines minimalist design with advanced functionality and offers a new standard in presentation control.
Video of the Year
Dams – 50th Anniversary
Dams produced two videos to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the company. It first charts Dams’ history since 1967 and then focuses on all current aspects of the business.
Krug & Priester – IDEAL Shredders: Quality
Often regarded as an uninspiring category, Krug & Priester with this video aimed to appeal to a wider and younger audience and highlight the quality – and very low return rate – of its shredders.
Krug & Priester – IDEAL Shredders: Simplicity
Presented in a humorous but impactful way, this video demonstrates the ease of use of IDEAL shredders.
Newell Brands – InkJoy Gel TV Campaign
The objective of Newell Brands’ InkJoy Gel TV Campaign was to create brand awareness and association, communicate product benefits and encourage viewers to purchase.
VOW Europe – ‘It’s on the Way’
VOW Europe’s video tracks the journey of an order from placement to delivery. It highlights the significant behind-the-scenes work and illustrates the value of wholesale partnerships to independent dealers.
Vendor of the Year
3M
A perennially impressive vendor with persistently innovative and high-quality products, outstanding brand strength and service-driven solutions.
Bi-silque
Hailed as an excellent partner, Bi-silque has raised the bar in a very saturated category, winning numerous awards across the industry over the past year or so.
Fellowes Europe
A regular previous award winner, Fellowes anticipates what’s happening in the market, constantly innovates and brings new products to the table.
Newell Brands
Newell Brands is successful in growing a challenging category with its wholesale partners through innovative new products, projects and campaigns.
Safescan
A niche company in our sector, but a leader in its category that has managed to successfully grow with its highly reactive approach to the market.
Young Executive of the Year
Haley-mae Benton, Channel Sales Manager, Avery UK
Hayley-mae Benton is a keen learner who is fast moving through the ranks. A talented individual who is hugely passionate about the business supplies industry and the company she works for.
Abdul Khamkar, EU Merchandising Manager, Office Depot
A dedicated individual who is well respected and highly valued within Office Depot as well as the vendor community. Abdul Khamkar is a real all-rounder who always puts the customer first.
Steve Weston, Product Manager, Lyreco UK & Ireland
As Product Manager at Lyreco, Steve Weston is showing great emerging leadership skills, successfully balancing the needs of a UK and Irish customer base with the demands of a global operator.
Reseller of the Year – revenues under €100 million
Codex
A dynamic Irish business with a motivated team that successfully managed to rebuild itself from the brink after the 2007 financial crisis.
Commercial
A UK operator with an outstanding social responsibility approach – excellent to work with and enjoying great partnerships with suppliers and customers alike.
Gerdmans
Sweden-based Gerdmans is part of Takkt’s Business Equipment Group. Completely B2B-focused, it’s highly respected and on an excellent growth trajectory.
Officeday
Officeday is the largest office supplies chain in the Baltic region, providing best-in-class products and services to its customer base in ever-evolving categories.
Reseller of the Year – revenues over €100 million
Amazon
Highly disruptive and setting the bar for procuring business supplies, Amazon’s biggest initiative of 2017 was the launch of Amazon Business
in a number of markets. High double-digit growth and finally profitable.
Bureau Vallée
A France-based franchise chain with good expansion in a challenging home retail market and emerging growth in other regions.
Büromarkt Böttcher
Büromarkt Böttcher continues to post impressive growth. Always on the lookout for new categories and services, with an intelligent and forward-thinking approach.
Lyreco
This operator manages to successfully marry a local approach with global resources and partnerships. Expansive product range and services.
