Best Of RetailVision Honors Vendors, Service Providers

Simply The Best

Retailers attending RetailVision 2008 in San Diego cast their ballots this week to determine the best vendor and service providers in 13 categories, from best merchandising to best product. At a gala held Wednesday night, the winners were announced.

And The Award Goes To...

Throughout RetailVision, vendors and service providers showcased their offerings in hopes of capturing the coveted Best of RetailVision award. Here are the statues presented to the winners.

Video Eyewear Gets A Nod

The best hardware product award went to Vuzix Corp. (pictured with Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news), the Rochester, N.Y.-based maker of video eyewear and personal display devices for mobile video, entertainment and other markets. At the show, Vuzix showed off its iWear AV920, iWear VR920 and AV310 Widescreen products, which are part of the vendor's video eyewear line.

Scanning Gets Neat

The Neat Company snagged the best peripheral product award for its portfolio of scanning solutions that enable users to scan receipts, business cards and a host of other documents and make them digital. Its product line includes NeatReceipts, NeatReceipts for Mac Advance Release, NeatDesk and NeatScan to Office. Here the Neat Company accepts its Best of RetailVision award from Craig Zarley, Everything Channel industry editor.

Iogear Takes Two

Snagging two Best of RetailVision awards was Iogear, which showcased its line KVM, KVMP, connectivity, networking, A/V, digital home, mobility and desktop solutions for home users, office workers and road warriors. Irvine, Calif.-based Iogear was chosen by retailers as the best overall vendor and for having the best accessory product. Here the Iogear team accepts its award from Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news.

Watch It Anywhere

The award for best digital home product was scooped up by SlingMedia, which stormed retail vision with line of products designed to connect users to video content anytime, anywhere. Sling Media showed off its SlingBox PRO and SOLO products, along with its HD Connect, SlingLink Turbo, SlingPlayerMobile and recently the unveiled Sling Catcher and Sling PRO HD offerings. Here Craig Zarley, Everything Channel industry editor, presents the SlingMedia team its Best of RetailVision award.

CPG/Woot Goes For The Hat-Trick

The one-two punch by CPG and Woot was the runaway favorite for the Best of RetailVision 2008, taking home three statues, the most by any winner. The CPG and Woot double-team, a partnership between the two companies that enabled them to meet with retailers together to discuss Woot's stocking distribution and inventory clearance blowout sales strategy and CPG's rebate management and promotion programs, and how the two work together, took home best in show awards in three different categories: merchandising, retail strategy and presentation. The two companies partnered to present their strategies and offerings to retailers in a tighter package with similar messaging. Here the CPG and Woot teams accept their Best of RetailVision award from Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news.

DMTech Freshens It Up

DMTech, which wowed retailers during the "Fresh" presentation, a showcase of seven hot new vendors and their emerging product offerings. Of the seven vendors that showed off the latest and greatest technologies that are ready for retail during the "Fresh" event, retailers picked DMTech as the best Fresh vendor. The award was presented to DMTech for its golf ball-sized wireless camera that can be linked to a computer via USB for playback. Here DMTech accepts its award from Craig Zarley, Everything Channel industry editor.

Kotra Brings New Technology

Korean vendor Kotra took home the Best of RetailVision award for best new technology for its line of privacy screen filters for laptops and smart phones and its portable presentation tablet PCs with dual vision screens. Here the Kotra team accepts its award from Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news.

Service Providers Get Artsy

When it came to service providers, retailers voted AppArt the top of the heap for its graphic arts production services and digital asset management solutions. At RetailVision, AppArt showcased its services for packaging prototypes and POP; 3D renderings; and clear screen print and digital production, taking home the Best Of RetailVision award as the best service provider. Here the AppArt team accepts its award from Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news.

Western Digital Double Up

As sort of a conference within a conference, RetailVision also hosted a Latin American program. Taking home the Best of RetailVision awards for best Latin American vendor and best Latin American retail strategy was Western Digital Technologies. Here the Western Digital team accepts an award from Steve Burke, Everything Channel editor/news.

Test Center Awards Innovation

Along with the Best of RetailVision awards, the CRN Test Center also honored three vendors that came to RetailVision with innovative products. Test Center staff evaluated and reviewed the products, running them through rigorous tests and weighing price, features and a host of other criteria to find the best of the pack. Here Edward Moltzen, CRN Test Center managing editor, awards Battery-Biz the bronze medal for best in show for its Duracell Instant Power Charger, a battery charger for portable devices.

Seeing Silver

The CRN Test Center awarded the silver medal to Vuzix for its iWare VR920 video eyeware gaming device. Here Edward Moltzen, CRN Test Center managing editor, awards the gold medal to Vuzix's Mike Hallett.

The Gold Is In The Bag

In an odd twist, the Test Center gold medal didn't go to a piece of technology. Instead, Test Center staff was wowed by the Stella computer tote laptop bag from icon/Motion Systems. The bag earned icon/Motion Systems the gold. Here icon/Motion Systems' Jeffrey Thompson accepts the gold medal from Edward Moltzen, CRN Test Center managing editor.