Distree Events announces final nominees for 'Middle East Retail Academy: 2009 Awards'

There are a total of 22 'MERA: 2009 Awards' with five nominees selected for each accolade. The final live electronic voting takes place at the 'MERA: 2009 Awards' Gala Dinner, held in conjunction with Digital Consumer Channel (DCC) MEA 2009 on May 20th 2009 in Fujairah, UAE.

"Each and every nominee should also be congratulated on their achievement. The MERA Awards have set the benchmark for channel awards in the region and are an integral part of the DCC MEA experience and the live electronic voting that takes place during the Gala Dinner ensures that each and every award winner is a worthy recipient. "We look forward to meeting all of them at the MERA Awards Gala Dinner."

said Farouk Hemraj, CEO at Distree Events, the awards organiser.

Vendor categories

Over the past few weeks, an executive committee of senior retail executives has taken part in a blind vote to shortlist five nominees for each vendor award. Simultaneously, an executive panel of retail executives has undertaken a similar exercise to come up with the shortlist of nominated vendors. Samsung and Sony lead the way with nominations for five separate award categories, with HP receiving four and both Acer and LG receiving three. Apple, Belkin, Philips and WD all secured two nominations each.

Vendors were assessed on a number of criteria including channel management strategy, inventory management, margin potential, co-marketing support, merchandising, training and customer support.

Retailer categories

In terms of retailers, Carrefour leads the way with 11 nominations spread across eight award categories. Jarir Bookstore, Emax, Plug-Ins, Sharaf DG, CompuMe, Electro, Extra and Al Ghanim all secured nominations in three award categories. The executive committee assessed retailers on a number of criteria including customer satisfaction, sales growth, corporate social responsibility, profitability, store experience, vendor relations, innovation and service levels.

The 'MERA: 2009 Awards' also include two awards for distributors and one for retail store concept of the year based on applications from participating companies. These applications are currently being assessed and evaluated by vendor executives. The five preferred entries receive a full nomination.

The MERA Awards were launched in 2008, creating a clear and transparent platform to recognize excellence in the region's consumer electronics and ICT channel, with awards for vendors, distributors and retailers.

The awards are held in conjunction with DCC MEA, where pre-qualified ICT and CE retail executives from across the Middle East market will have the opportunity to review the latest products from the 50-plus vendors set to attend this year's event. With retailers from 15-plus countries across the MEA region attending DCC MEA, the event offers vendors insight into markets across the region and the opportunity to accelerate or improve their go-to-market retail strategy.