The 10^th OutDoor Industry Award is inviting all manufacturers, designers, developers, importers, sales organisations and dealers to submit their new product entries, which will later be evaluated by the panel of judges.

Any company or an individual can participate in the award, regardless of whether they have a stand at the OutDoor 2015 trade fair that takes place from 15-18 July.

Transparency

The high degree of transparency and high calibre of the judges play an important role in ensuring that the OutDoor Industry Award isn’t just an accolade given to particularly innovative, market-driven and cutting-edge products, but also an effective and credible marketing tool for any award winner, organisers report.

“We place top priority on credibility, transparency and fairness. These characteristics are particularly true of this internationally renowned award,” explained Dirk Heidrich, Project Manager of the trade fair on Lake Constance.

Ten categories

The award is presented in ten categories: apparel, shoes, backpacks/travel luggage, mountain-climbing equipment, camping equipment, sleeping bags, water sports, accessories, innovative materials and sustainable innovation.

The closing date for applications is 16 June 2015 and any product can be entered that hasn’t been on the market for more than two years.

Evaluation process

The award is organised by Messe Friedrichshafen, together with the Deutsche Designer Club (DDC). After the positive experience from the previous year, the DDC will chair the judges’ panel this year too.

Six international judges with outdoor experience from of retail, media, industry and design will decide who is given the award. The six judges will spend two days looking at all the products and ideas submitted in detail, discussing their merits and then making their decisions.

Criteria and recognition

The sought-after Awards and Gold Awards will be presented in Friedrichshafen based on nine criteria: level of innovation, functionality, design, selection of materials, quality of the craftsmanship, sustainability, value, weight/pack size and added value.

All the prize-winners will receive awards in a special ceremony. Furthermore, the winners of the OutDoor Industry Award will benefit from a wide range of multichannel communications activities that Messe Friedrichhafen is initiating to draw the attention of retail, industry and consumers to the award-winning products.

www.outdoor-show.com