Calls Still Open for PG’s Category Captains Competition

There’s still time to submit applications for Progressive Grocer’s 15th annual Category Captains Awards competition that recognizes overall excellence in innovative, creative, profit-generating category management platforms.

PG will devote its November/December 2010 issue to presenting its new slate of Category Captains’ award-winning programs, which will bring supermarket industry executives up to speed on need-to-know news about the next generation of category management.

All Category Captain entries will be preliminarily qualified by PG’s editorial staff, and then carefully evaluated by an impartial judging panel comprised of a cross section of retailers, marketing executives and industry experts.

All Category Captain entries will be evaluated against three requisite components: innovation, delivery of measured results, and direct performance feedback from retailers.

Complete Category Captain Awards entry details follow below:

1. Innovation: Submit an overview synopsis of new key category management initiatives your company/organization has employed over the last 12 months to accomplish the following crucial objectives:

• Product differentiation in a specific supermarket category

• Increased sales for all products in the specified category

• Verifiable data illustrating outstanding performance among retail partners resulting in higher sales across the entire category

All entries must be clearly and concisely explained in a synopsis, submitted in a Microsoft Word document of 800 words or less. The synopsis must include verifiable examples of new programs, technologies, business systems, merchandising schemes and/or promotional tactics that played a key role in your category development objectives.

Should your submission be chosen for recognition, the overview/abstract will form the basis of a write up discussing your winning program that will appear in the November/December 2010 issue of Progressive Grocer.

2. Results: Submit supporting verifiable comparable market-specific or account-specific sales or market share data that supports your claims about the effectiveness of your category management program/platform.

* Please note: Progressive Grocer will NOT reveal/publish the names of the supermarket chains/companies/executives cited in your abstract unless given express permission in advance to do so by each applicant.

3. Art/Graphics: Submit an electronic image of one or more of the products/programs mentioned in your synopsis. Images must be 300.dpi in resolution, in .tif or .jpg format; 4x4 preferable for size.

4. Submit your synopsis on innovation (#1 above,) your results (#2 above,) and relevant art (#3,) no later than Sept. 1, 2010.

Special Note: Entries lacking all specified criteria will not be considered.

If you have any questions or need further assistance, contact Robert Kuwada at [email protected].