Magazine Publishers of America celebrates winners at retail conference

The Magazine Publishers of America yesterday held its annual retail conference called "The Marketing of Magazines and Books," where it awarded retailers for excellence in book and magazine merchandising.

Held in Orlando, FL, the conference attracted about 600 magazine and book publishers, wholesalers, distributors, suppliers and retailers.

The event provides a forum for discussing the challenges facing each segment of the single copy sales chain.

H-E-B Grocery Company was awarded a Best Practices Award for outstanding performance in checkout merchandising.

The company was recognized for its coverage of all checkout opportunities for the magazine/book category, consistent rack maintenance and its strategy to display magazines with beverage coolers.

Wegmans was the recipient for the Best Practices Award in the promotions/cross-merchandising category.

The company won for implementing and supporting creative cross-merchandising opportunities across various departments, and for having a definitive cross-merchandising and promotion calendar.

The Book Retailer of the Year Award went to The Kroger Company for its commitment to the industry and its ability to connect with consumers.

Each winning retail company was awarded $2,000 to donate to the charity of its choice.

For more information on the retail conference, visit www.magazine.org/retailconference.