Product of the Year 2021

Zoltán Fekete
general secretary
Branded Goods Association

Going forward without hesitation, even when times are hard. This is what comes to my mind when I say: it is really good news that Product of the Year was organised this year as well. However, there were fewer winners, instead of the usual 8-10 categories we only announced winners in 5. Basically this happened because of two reasons: the coronavirus pandemic and the introduction of stricter conditions for entering the programme. Some of the winners this year were those brand owners that win almost every year. This is how they strengthen the consistency of their brand and image building. //

Tamás Géczi 
managing partner
Inspira

When analysing the competing products, I also try to look at them through the eyes of the consumer, trying to notice those entries that offer something new which is of value to shoppers. The Covid-19 pandemic didn’t influence my decisions, but I must tell here and now: I respect those brand owners very much who didn’t stop innovating in this difficult period, following a long-term innovation strategy. It is noteworthy that the majority of entries were created before last March – when the pandemic started. //

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Zsuzsanna Hermann
managing director-editor-in-chief
Trade magazin

During a crisis when shopper preferences are influenced by more factors than usually, trust in brands becomes more important. When evaluating the competition entries, I was focusing on the innovation factor. The jury does a pre-selection, but basically it is the consumers who decide on the winners. This is very important, as my view is that the secret behind Product of the Year’s success is the involvement of consumers.//

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Dr. Péter Keresztesi
deputy CEO
Brit Media

What I see is that many product manufacturers are using new innovations to leave the COVID-induced crisis behind. This is the reason why I say the quality level of competition empties increased! This year much more entries offered real innovation than before, products that haven’t simply been given a new look or launched with an irrelevant novelty factor. It seems that the crisis motivated companies for being creative and innovative.  //

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Csaba László
professor
Corvinus University
Budapest

It is always interesting to see the different strategies the competition entries are using. In certain categories many of them are playing safe and the competing product or services are rather similar. In other categories the entries tend to take more risks and it is exciting to witness the original ideas that are used to be different from others, because I can select the products that have their own character. These are the kind of competitors that I like to cast my vote on. This year I was also trying to notice the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic: are the experts doing the innovation work adapting to the new conditions? //

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József Martinkó
editor-in-chief
OCTOGON
magazine of architecture