During this year's show, EXHIBITOR magazine hosted the EuroShop Awards, the first stand-design competition officially endorsed by EuroShop organizers. All exhibitors were automatically entered into the competition, which was sponsored by the International Federation of Exhibition and Event Services (IFES). EXHIBITOR staff selected up to 10 finalists in each category, and an international panel of design experts scored finalists to identify five winners and 10 honorable mentions in five size-based categories. Plus, one winner and honorable mention were chosen by popular vote in the People's Choice Award category.
XS Category (20 or Fewer sqm.)
Winner: Blocher Partners GmbH
Blocher Partners GmbH, an architectural- and interior-design firm with offices in Germany and India, took the top slot in the Extra Small category (for stands 20 square meters or fewer). The 3-by-5-meter booth (as well as the two honorable mentions in this category) were housed within the Designer Village. Here, more than 20 companies were given a choice of wood and steel constructs – whose range of available components included gabled "roofs," beam elements, and wall and flat-roof structures – from which to craft their own unique stands. Blocher Partners opted for a bold-blue, gabled-roof edifice and lined its support beams with lighting. Complementary orange and white graphics relayed the firm's drive for human-centered, collaborative design and expounded on the relationship between architecture, communication, design strategy, and more.
Honorable Mention: Hartmannvonsiebenthal GmbH
Brand-experience provider Hartmannvonsiebenthal GmbH augmented its flat-roof structure and black-and-white color palette (chosen from available Design Village components) with a host of suspended, mirrored balls and two high-tech engagements.
Honorable Mention: Fitch Inc.
Fitch Inc., a design consultancy with offices in locations ranging from Moscow to Mumbai, India, employed the power of repetition with its stand inside the Designer Village. While light sticks formed four illuminated arrows on the exterior, the booth's matte-black interior displayed hundreds of white icons, depicting everything from tulips to campfires, arranged in a grid-like pattern.
Small Category (21 – 39 sqm.)
Winner: Smart Design Expo Sp. Zo. o.
Polish exhibit house Smart Design Expo Sp. Zo. o. employed a decidedly industrial flair for its 4.5-by-7.5-meter booth, which won the Small Booth category (encompassing exhibits 21 to 39 square meters). Creating a dramatic, towering presence on the show floor, the structure comprised a wooden exterior featuring myriad slats that had been stained black. A sophisticated take on the pallet-reuse trend, the edifice offered illuminated company logos on the exterior along with monitors showing ongoing capabilities presentations. The back wall inside the structure proffered dramatic eye-catching videos that drew visitors inside the cavernous space.
Honorable Mention: José María Sans Amill S.A. (dba Kriskadecor)
José María Sans Amill S.A. (dba Kriskadecor) let its products do all the talking. Displaying its stunning curtains comprising aluminum links treated with various textures and colors, the Spanish firm wowed judges and attendees alike.
Honorable Mention: TorTer e-Design Ltd.
Mixing a plethora of patterns and forms along with a host of mirrored and glossy finishes, Hungarian exhibit- and event-design firm TorTer e-Design Ltd. caught the eyes of passersby and lured them inside its whimsical space for a closer look.
Medium Category (40 – 79 sqm.)
Winner: Broszeit GmbH
Broszeit GmbH faced a familiar challenge at EuroShop. The German provider of wooden-board products, which are available in a near-limitless number of finishes and thicknesses, wanted to display the depth and breadth of its products – all without turning its stand into a cluttered mess. Deemed the winner in the Medium category (for stands 40 to 79 square meters), the design was made almost entirely of Broszeit's products, which were stacked atop one another and cut into organic, seemingly undulating forms.
Honorable Mention: The Inside B.V.
Unfinished wood, lush greenery, and a one-off architectural exterior combined to create a contemporary space for The Inside B.V., a Netherlands stand builder. While glossy-black pedestal tables offered cozy conversation spots, a massive bar took center stage.
Honorable Mention: F&M Retail GmbH
Retail-design firm F&M Retail GmbH of Cologne, Germany, turned its corner, in-line space into veritable eye candy via a series of angular treatments, including a central reception desk, a series of white cords suspended overhead, and white graphic strips that seemed to mirror the suspended assembly.
Large Category (80 – 200 sqm.)
Winner: Gerflor Mipolam GmbH
The winner of the Large category, for stands 80 to 200 square meters, featured a marvelous meld of the exhibit's back wall and flooring space. Crafted for Gerflor Mipolam GmbH, a German flooring manufacturer, the project displayed a host of flooring products on practically every conceivable surface. However, it was the exhibit's back wall, also covered in flooring products, that took the spotlight. Here, designers extended the ground-based products and even mirrored a seating arrangement positioned on one corner of the booth.
Honorable Mention: Fairnet GmbH – Booth #4C24
Built around the theme "It's Magic," the stand for Fairnet GmbH boasted a unique focal point comprising 16 monitors set against a soaring back wall. At certain angles, the screens appeared to be displaying nothing but a static-white background. But when viewed through special glass panels hung in front of the installation, colorful and dynamic content came into full view.
Honorable Mention: Studio Dega JSC
When it comes to amorphous, modular exhibitry, Russia-based Studio Dega JSC cornered – or "rounded" – the market. Comprising its InfinityConst system, the massive structure offered myriad messaging and projection opportunities and created a commanding presence.
XL Category (More Than 200 sqm.)
Winner: Oktalite Lichttechnik GmbH
At roughly 405 square meters, the stand for Oktalite Lichtechnik GmbH was the clear winner in the competition's Extra Large category, reserved for booths more than 200 square meters. The Cologne, Germany-based retail-lighting provider submitted a stunning stand comprised of two distinctly separate areas. While the public portion housed a huge hospitality and seating space, a secondary, fully enclosed environment presented Oktalite products in realistic vignettes. Here, surrounded by clothing and grocery-store environs, visitors and staff quietly talked shop.
Honorable Mention: Hans Boodt Mannequins B.V.
If ever a booth whispered "come hither," it was the stand for Hans Boodt Mannequins B.V. of The Netherlands. While the stand housed a bevy of product displays inside, a massive hand and extended finger seemed to lift the curtain surrounding the booth, tempting visitors to take a more intimate look.
Honorable Mention: Viessmann Werke GmbH & Co. KG
Viessmann Werke GmbH & Co. KG turned its stand into a village, complete with multiple "houses" that displayed the firm's refrigeration products in action and unfinished-wood trees running down the space's central boulevard.
People's Choice Award
Winner: Armo Diseño S.A. de C.V.
Earning the most online votes in the People's Choice Award category, Armo Diseño S.A. de C.V. presented a playful stand that was a testament to the firm's creative and logistical capabilities. The Mexico-based retail design and fabrication firm eschewed traditional exhibitry in favor of a customized shipping container. While the interior housed a cozy conversation space, the exterior environment included a handful of mannequins, which seemed to be attaching a monitor to one side of the edifice and securing the crate to a bunch of overhead balloons, which appeared likely to elevate the entire experience to new heights.
Honorable Mention: Arco Global
Turkish shopfitting firm Arco Global earned the second slot in the People's Choice Award category with its experiential space. Staffers escorted groups of attendees through the stand, which featured art installations interwoven with Arco Global's capabilities story.