The ASTRA Star Play Awards!

It’s that time of year when finalists for the Play Awards have been chosen and voting is open! Remember, only retailers are allowed to vote. All retailer members will receive a ‘Look Book’ in their mailbox soon highlighting all the finalists. Many like to use this as their guide to vote! How are finalists chosen?

Here are the steps that take place:

1. Nominations for products opens up in December for awards chosen in the following calendar year. Anyone can nominate any product that fits the criteria which we note when nomination notices go multiple communications.

2. Our play awards committee, made up of 5 seasoned retailers, geographically and store size/doors diverse, go through all the nominations determining what products qualify based on the criteria. The finalists are then chosen by the committee.

3. For the nominations that qualify, samples are requested for the committee who then meet to check them out in person.

4. The committee carefully evalutes on many criteria, including the following:

• Is it new? (since Fall 2021)

• Is it unique?

• Is it available? (must be shipping by September 2023)

• Is it significantly thought-provoking or ground-breaking?

5. The committee determines categories based on the finalists chosen.

6. Vendors are notified and confirmation of availability is received before finalists are announced and voting by retailers opens.

7. Voting ends May 24th and winners are announced at Marketplace & Academy!

This year, winners will be announced during our breakfast on the show floor on Monday, June 12th. All full-conference attendees are encouraged to be there!

If you aren’t at the breakfast to hear the announcement, stop by ASTRA Square in the center of the show floor to ask about the winners. Manufacturers of winning products will also be proudly showcasing them to make it easy for retailers to order!