“Our goal is to push the private label industry forward and set a new standard for the recognition of superior design and great retailer owned brands,” said Phillip Russo, Publisher, Global Retail Brands Magazine, while announcing the launch of the first annual Vertex Awards International Private Brand Design Competition.

“The Vertex Awards are the only global competition devoted exclusively to the art of Private Brand package design,” said Christopher Durham, President and Chief Strategist, My Private Brand, who is co-sponsoring the competition.

“It’s time to stop rewarding mediocrity and encourage greatness. We’ve created this competition to do just that. There are brands out there challenging the status quo and they deserve to be recognized.”

Open to retail owned brands worldwide and all trade channels, it encourages retailers, agencies, consultants, graphic design firms, manufacturers and brokers to submit their Private Brand entries.

An esteemed panel of design experts from around the world will judge entries in 16 categories. Awards for Best New Brand Design, Best Redesigned Brand and Best In Show will also be given. Durham and Russo will hand select a recipient for the Publisher’s Choice award.

For a design to qualify, it must have been introduced in-store between November 2012 and November 2013. Points will be awarded for design, information architecture, originality, structure, and x-factor.

“Awards are given based on a numeric score,” said Russo. “So if five entries earn enough points to qualify at the gold level in a given category, all five will receive the Gold Award.”

“Because it’s based on a standardized numeric score, it’s possible there will be multiple winners at a given level,” added Russo. “If the minimum score for a Gold Award is achieved, a Gold will be given. The scoring system was developed to reward the best Private Brand package design in the world, not mediocrity.”

Winning work will be honored in March on the competition website, in Global Retail Brands’ March print issue, on My Private Brand’s website, www.myprivatebrand.com, and on the Global Retail Brands‘ website, www.globalretailmag.com. In addition, all winning entries will appear in a book to be available on Amazon.

Cost of Entry: $95

The Vertex Package Design Awards