Great Northern Instore Receives 4 OMAs

APPLETON, WI., March 30, 2016 – Great Northern Instore, an industry leader in retail and point-of-purchase displays, received four awards, including a Gold award, in the Outstanding Merchandising Achievement (OMA) Awards Competition held March 24 at the 2016 Global Shop Expo in Las Vegas.

POPAI’s OMA Awards Competition is the premier award show recognizing the most innovative and effective in-store and point of purchase displays. Since 1958, this competition held alongside the industry’s largest tradeshow, GlobalShop, recognizes in-store marketing programs that lift sales, make products memorable, and entice consumers to purchase products. After a two-round judging process, displays are awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze OMA Statuettes at the Annual OMA Awards Celebration by a prestigious panel of judges, composed of producers, brand marketers and retailers.

Take a look at the Great Northern Instore winners below.

Gold: Perrier “Best Trip Ever” Topper

Perrier (topper only)The objective: Generate Perrier brand awareness and build equity with an in-store promotional case topper offering a sweepstakes callout for a chance to win “Your Best Trip Ever” (Sweepstakes accessed through Facebook).

The assignment: Create a case topping promotional structure communicating Perrier’s “Best Trip Ever” sweepstakes. Key requirements of the design included the ability to shop the product stack from all sides, ease in-store execution for route personnel and to provide an in-store “interruption” for discerning consumers.

Results: The image on the pedestal sums it up…four cans of Perrier including one being grabbed by a hand, corresponding to the four words for the sweepstakes.  The attention grabbing motion, emotional engagement with lifestyle imagery and a structure that symbolized the promotion led to success.

Silver: Tradewinds Jimmy Buffet Iced Tea Display

Tradewinds-Silver2The objective: Our activation goal was to generate trial and awareness while driving velocity at retail.  Also, the execution was to communicate a promotional overlay to drive in-store excitement.

The assignment: Create an off-shelf merchandising destination for Tradewinds single serve (18.5 oz. bottle) iced tea that would promote the “Sip and Sing your way to Paradise” sweeps and karaoke contest. Creative mandatories included an “overarching” tropical paradise theme utilizing vibrant colors and also an “appropriate” level of visual elements that communicated the necessary entry steps/rules.

Results: Sales exceeded expectations. Audit data confirmed that many of the displays were restocked multiple times during the promotional period.  The unique esthetic of the unit was well received by store managers.  Additionally, the pre-assembled nature of most of the structure ensured a successful instore execution.

Bronze: 3M Office Depot/Max Expressions POG


3MOffice-Bronze WinnerThe objective:
 Merchandise the tape and accessory area to improve the shopping experience.  Particularly, help shoppers see the fun and creative patterns that are available, so they are inspired to shop the hundreds of SKUs easily.  The solution must be easily updated for the frequently changing styles and designs in the Expressions category.

The assignment: Create a system of shelf trays with large front graphic panels that feature key patterns from this very large (150+) SKU mix.  That will help reduce the visual clutter of the hundreds of SKU, while organizing the product and making it both visually well presented and easy to shop at all times.

Results: The sales of products in both displays have been reported as exceeding expectation and far exceeding sales in previous promotions.  The combination of the “cute” art, well designed structures and dual placement of the same style graphics all worked together to make a huge successful win at Black Friday holiday sale time.

Bronze: Purina Purpose End Cap

Purina-BronzeThe objective:  Drive trial and awareness of this unique, new cat litter line driven by a fragrance-forward product proposition.

The assignment:  Develop an engaging display vehicle to merchandise this new product line in an impactful manner while educating the consumer about the new, sophisticated cat litter scents.

Results: Execution successfully achieved across stores.  Simple set-up helped aid execution; the fragrance test unit came fully assembled, only needing to be removed from its shipper box.  The focal endcap drove sales up and amounted to a 680% lift versus previous weeks.

Great Expectations

Great Expectations is more than a tagline, it is an attitude. At Great Northern, customer challenges are met by an undying spirit to doing what others can’t or won’t. It’s in our DNA. And it is what our customers have come to expect with Great Northern.

How can we exceed your expectations?