It has announced a series of exciting market and environment-led award categories for the 2008 event, simultaneously revealing that next year’s gala awards evening will, for the first time ever, be part of a complete day designed both to recognise and reward packaging innovation, and equally to inform, educate and stimulate debate on hot industry topics via a high-level “strategic business conference”.
May 22, 2008 will therefore see not only the presentation at London’s glittering Café Royal of the 2008 Starpack Industry Awards, but also the staging in London of a full-day “Starpack Summit” focusing especially on how brand owners, retailers and brand designers can create packs that both effectively protect and “sell” the goods within but equally meet demands for sustainability.
A combination of seminars and presentations from top industry experts (WRAP, and Marks & Spencer are among those to have already agreed to provide speakers), “The Packaging Dilemma – The Consumer Challenge” summit will “revolve around every aspect of packaging as it affects the consumer, retailer, brand owner, designer and packaging material supplier”. “Movers and shakers from the retail and brand community will debate today’s most critical headline issues,” promises IOP: The Packaging Society. “Consumers are no longer prepared to pay only lip service to environmental issues; they are demanding real sustainable options from brand owners alongside convenience and functionality. The industry must step up to the mark to create real solutions”.
The re-vamped 2008 Starpack Awards, meanwhile, (closing date for entries is January 31, 2007; visit www.starpack.uk.com now for an entry form) will reward packs “that deliver significant improvements across design and marketing, environmental performance and technical development”. Sponsored by WRAP, Alcan Packaging and DHL Exel Supply Chain, and supported by the British Brands Group, there will be 11 Design and Marketing award categories next year: Best Brand Design, Best Food Design, Best Drinks Design, Best Cosmetics and Toiletries Design, Best Pharmaceutical or Healthcare Design, Best Household Design, Best Luxury Product, Best Agrochemical, Farming or Petcare Product; Transit – Business-to-Business; Transit – Business-to-Consumer, and Retail Ready and Display & Collation. Awards in all categories will reward “outstanding packaging design, including surface graphics and print, form and functionality and use of materials and components”.
There will also be four Technical Innovation Awards – presented for “significant improvements in the technical performance of packaging” across four categories: Environmental, Consumer Products, Technical Development and Component Development, and Individual Performance Awards such as Best Packaging Designer or Design House.
All award categories are open to packaging manufacturers, retailers, brand owners, designers or design groups, material groups, manufacturing or conversion processes.
The 2008 Starpack Industry Awards, being organised in partnership with Packaging Today, will be complemented by the 2008 Student and School Starpacks, designed to help attract design students and schoolchildren to a career in packaging. For entry details (closing date is February 29, 2008) visit: www.iom3.org/starpack/students/
The "rejuvenated' 2008 Starpack Awards have a new logo London’s Café Royal will host the gala 2008 Starpack Awards evening next May
