Your time to shine

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ENTERING THE RETAILER AND SPECIAL CATEGORIES IN THIS YEAR’S BOUTIQUE STAR AWARDS

The Boutique Star Awards

2023 are well underway as we shine the spotlight on the nation’s best independent fashion retailers and brands. There are so many reasons to enter the competition from gaining mountains of free publicity and nationwide recognition to boosting team morale and reaching new customers. Taking part is absolutely free and you can submit your entry online via our secure website. Here’s a rundown of this year’s retailer and special awards with some key criteria to keep in mind while fine-tuning your entry…

Retailer Awards

Fashion Independent of the Year

CRITERIA: Recognising multibrand fashion indies, the winner of this award will stock a perfectly curated product range while offering an outstanding shopping experience. To enter, retailers are required to outline a solid business plan, buying strategy and future growth plan as well as signs they’ve remained agile amid recent market challenges. The winner of this award will be a great allrounder with a good social media presence and inspiring e-commerce business. Retailers entering this award can stock several product categories but womenswear, menswear or childrenswear must command its largest percentage of sales. Entrants must operate at least one bricks-and-mortar store in the UK or Ireland.

Independent Group of the Year

CRITERIA: Celebrating the industry’s leading fashion and lifestyle indie groups, entrants for this award must operate more than one multi-brand bricks-and-mortar store in the UK or Ireland. The winner will be an outstanding retail group with commercial success online and across each of its stores. Judges will be looking for an expert buying strategy and business plan with brands that are perfectly tailored for its target customer base. The winner will offer an excellent shopping experience and customer service and demonstrate how this is cohesive across each of its stores and website. Retailers must also show how they have overcome recent economic challenges. Indie groups entering this award can carry any category including womenswear, menswear and lifestyle.

Creative VM Independent of the Year

CRITERIA: Rewarding a fashion or lifestyle indie with outstanding visual merchandising, the winner of this award will demonstrate creative excellence in all areas of their bricks-and-mortar store. Entries should outline how they use visual merchandising to enhance the overall shopping experience, generate sales and attract in-store footfall. The winning store will have VM as an integral part of its strategy and will regularly produce inventive store windows and a visually enticing shop floor that appeals to its target market. Retailers entering this award must stock several brands and only one store can be entered per business/ group.

Social Media Strategy of the Year

CRITERIA: This award recognises fashion and lifestyle indies running an outstanding social media channel. The winning retailer will be outshining its competitors on social media across one or several platforms. Its social media content will be perfectly tailored for its target customer base with posts, images and videos that spark engagement and attract new followers. The winner will need to demonstrate how it uses social media to boost sales as well as offering an online community for its customers. It will also be one step ahead of other indies, jumping onto new social media trends in a fast and effective way. Multi-brand independent retailers carrying womenswear, menswear, fashion accessories or lifestyle products can enter this award.

New Independent Retailer of the Year

CRITERIA: Open to multi-brand independent retailers that launched after January 2022, this award celebrates the industry’s most promising start-ups. The winner will have a solid business plan and USP in place alongside a carefully curated range of products that perfectly suits its target customer base. Judges will be looking for a new indie retailer already armed with a strong buying strategy and future growth plan. The new business will need to demonstrate early success despite the challenges of the past 12 months. Multi-brand independent retailers carrying womenswear, menswear, fashion accessories or lifestyle products can enter this award.

Sustainability Advocate of the Year

CRITERIA: New for 2023, this award celebrates independent fashion and lifestyle retailers making positive steps towards operating more sustainably and/or ethically. The winner will stock a selection of brands that are sustainable and/or ethical and appeal to its customer base. The retailer can be at any stage on its journey to becoming more sustainable/ ethical (or it could have had sustainability as its focus since opening). Judges will be looking for indies that are considering as many aspects of operating more ethically/ sustainably as possible, including opting for ‘green’ suppliers as well as recycling, minimising waste, reducing their carbon footprint and helping shoppers consume more responsibly. Entrants should also outline their environmental commitments and action plan for a more sustainable future. Retailers entering this award can stock categories including womenswear, menswear, childrenswear and lifestyle.

Community Hero of the Year

CRITERIA: This award recognises the independent retailer owners and teams who are going an extra mile to give back to their local community. Entrants should demonstrate how they have created a strong identity among the local population whether that’s for the shop itself or the people behind it. This could have been achieved through in-store events, charity fundraisers, involvement in local groups, introducing innovative services or by going above and beyond for people in their community. The judging panel will be looking for retailers that bring something extra special to the area, whether they’re supporting local causes, delivering an outstanding public service or bringing people together in a positive way. Retailers entering this award can stock categories including womenswear, menswear, childrenswear and lifestyle.

Special Awards

Lifetime Achievement CRITERIA: Open for nominations only, this award is for an individual that has made an outstanding contribution to the industry throughout their career. They will be an industry veteran, championing independent retailers and aiding the sector’s growth and development. This award is open to anyone working in the independent fashion retail and wholesale sector.

Newcomer

CRITERIA: This award will recognise an exceptional individual who joined the independent fashion retail community in 2022 or 2023. The winner will be passionate about the industry and contributing to its future success. They will already be a shining star in their current employment and will be eager to play a significant role in the overall industry. The award is open to any individual working on the retail or wholesale side of the industry including retail staff and owners, trade show teams, designers and those working for agencies and distributors.

Outstanding Business

CRITERIA: The Outstanding Business award is open to exceptional fashion and lifestyle independents, suppliers and industry events. The winner will be a remarkable business that excels in every area. The finalists for this award will be independent retailers, agents, brands, distributors and trade shows/ events that truly go above and beyond for their customers. Please nominate your favourite retailers, suppliers or trade shows that you admire or are a joy to work with.

Supplier Awards

British Brand of the Year

International Brand of the Year

Fashion Agency of the Year

Fashion Distributor of the Year

Accessories/ Footwear Brand of the Year

Sustainable Brand of the Year

NEW: Female Founded Brand of the Year

How To Enter

CELEBRATING INDEPENDENT

FASHION RETAILERS AND SUPPLIERS