Sears Canada and Walmart Canada were each honoured twice at the Retail Council of Canada‘s Excellence in Retail Awards last week.
Sears won the program’s community corporate social responsibility category for its title sponsorship of the 2009 Sears National Kids Cancer Ride, a charitable cross-Canada cycling initiative. Sears’ other win came in the retail loss prevention (large chain) category.
Walmart was also honoured for a corporate social responsibility initiative, winning the environment category for its Environmental Demonstration Store in Burlington, Ont., which the retailer estimates uses 60% less energy than stores of similar size.
Walmart added another victory in the in-store retail merchandising category for its “Project Patio” plan, which showcased the company’s outdoor living products.
The remaining awards were captured by 13 different companies, including major names such as Harry Rosen (in-store merchandising, mid-sized chain), Costco (online retailing, large chain), Mountain Equipment Co-op (retail marketing/advertising, mid-sized chain) and Grand & Toy (retail store design, mid-sized chain).
There was at least one underdog winner, however, with building supply retailer TIM-BR Mart victorious in the retail marketing/advertising (large chain) category for its World Junior Hockey Video Challenge campaign, an initiative that invited minor hockey teams to upload videos and compete for a chance to win a team trip to the 2010 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships in Saskatoon.
Phil Otto, president and CEO of Revolve, the Halifax agency that developed the campaign with help from Burlington, Ont. shop Sims Advertising, said it was especially gratifying to see his client win in a category that featured retail heavyweights such as Future Shop, Staples and Home Depot.
“The significance of this award is actually bigger for a client who tries to do an awful lot with not an awful lot of money, who competes against some really big players,” said Otto. “Throwing tons of money at the project wasn’t what won. It was strategy.” The complete list of winners is available here.
