JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Acosta Sales & Marketing, a leading full-service sales and marketing agency in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, has received the Gold Thomas A. Edison Marketing Award from the internationally renowned Edison Awards™ for its 2013 Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) Believe in Heroes® campaign. The campaign, which ran from September 11 through Veterans Day, involved the collaboration of more than 40 CPG brands and 110 retailers across the country, and asked Americans to show their support and appreciation for this generation of veterans in a simple, everyday way — grocery shopping. More than $6 million was raised for life-saving veteran programs provided by WWP, a non-profit organization whose mission is to honor and empower Wounded Warriors.
The distinguished awards, inspired by Thomas Edison’s persistence and inventiveness, recognize innovation, creativity and ingenuity in the global economy. The Thomas A. Edison Marketing Award recognizes the leadership role that marketing plays as an inherent and critical factor in every aspect of innovation — from inspiration, discovery and development to distribution, positioning and introduction of a concept. Edison Award nominees are judged by more than 3,000 senior business executives and academics from across the nation whose votes acknowledge the Finalists’ success in meeting the award’s stringent criteria of quality.
“It’s exciting to see companies like Acosta continuing Thomas Edison’s legacy of challenging conventional thinking,” said Frank Bonafilia, Edison Awards’ executive director. “Edison Awards recognize the game‐changing products and services, and the teams that brought them to consumers.”
“We are honored to receive the esteemed Thomas A. Edison Marketing Award,” said Robert Hill, President & CEO of Acosta. “We are extremely proud of the support generated by the Believe in Heroes campaign to make a positive impact on the lives of the injured servicemen and women who have made sacrifices to protect and defend the United States. This award not only highlights the amazing results we accomplished last year, but also energizes and motivates us to continue to build upon this success as we prepare to launch the 2014 campaign.”
Founded in 2010 by Acosta, Believe in Heroes is an annual, national cause marketing campaign that brings grocery retailers, trusted brands and shoppers together to raise funds for WWP. As part of the 2013 campaign, participating brands offered high-value coupons in a special, free-standing insert delivered to 53 million households nationwide. Retailers supported the campaign in-store with special signage and point-of-purchase materials, and raised funds through donations at the register and other initiatives. Consumers were also able to support the cause through direct donations and by purchasing licensed Believe in Heroes merchandise. The program has raised $16 million to date for critical veteran programs provided by WWP. For more information on Believe in Heroes, visit wwpbelieve.org.
About Acosta Sales & Marketing
Acosta is the sales and marketing powerhouse behind most of the trusted brands seen in stores every day. The company provides a range of outsourced sales, marketing and retail merchandising services throughout the U.S. and Canada. For more than 85 years, Acosta has led the industry in helping consumer packaged goods companies move products off shelves and into shoppers’ baskets. Visit www.acosta.com.
About The Edison Awards
The Edison Awards is a program conducted by Edison Universe, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to fostering future innovators. The 2014 Edison Awards are sponsored by Ipsos. For more information about the Edison Awards, Edison Universe and a list of past winners, visit www.edisonawards.com.
