Swiss Print Award: Submission opens

The Swiss Print Award is the only award for print projects designed and realized in Switzerland - with or without a digital connection. Since 2013, it has been awarded by an independent jury of experts for outstanding print work. The prize is awarded in gold, silver and bronze in the categories Printed Matters, Books, Publications and Printed Objects. There is also the Peter Grob Award for special achievement in quality and creativity.

The Swiss Print Award is primarily not just about "beautiful print". It is also about the cleverly realized print product that touches, surprises and motivates the recipient. And, in the sense of the AIDA formula (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action), can encourage action. This year, for the first time, the awards will be presented at the KKL Luzern. This will take place after the "Forum Swiss Print + Media Industry" event. The ceremony will begin at 17:00 on April 27, 2023.

Works for the award can be submitted from now on, deadline is March 10. Further information is available here.

m&k Werbewoche spoke to Viscom Director Beat Kneubühler about the new ways of the Swiss Print Award:

m&k advertising week: The Swiss Print Award is breaking new ground. At the end of November last year, the viscom p+c association took over the award. What prompted viscom to take this step?

Beat Kneubühler: The Swiss Print Award is an attractive and established prize in the industry. In the conception of the new industry event, it was immediately clear to us that the award could be ideally integrated here

What is the significance of the award for the printing industry?

The Swiss Print Award stands for excellence in the creative and printing industries. It is still the only award that honors print products manufactured in Switzerland. With the Swiss Print Award, the graphic arts industry is doing the best advertising for itself.

The award ceremony will not take place in the Papiersaal in Zurich as in the past, but in the KKL Luzern, why?

We want to offer the graphic arts industry an exciting industry day, which will take place in the KKL Lucerne. At the same time, we are holding the annual viscom/p+c members' meeting at the same venue before the industry event. The presentation of the Swiss Print Award rounds off the day ideally, so it was only logical to move this event to the KKL as well.

The industry event Power pur "Forum Swiss Print + Media" Industry takes place in the run-up to the award ceremony. What can visitors expect from this day at the KKL?

The motto of the afternoon is "Courage to change - prerequisites for a successful future". You can look forward to an entertaining program with exciting speakers and attractive topics.

As an association director, how do you feel about the doom and gloom that is sometimes attributed to print and the products of print?

Print is a very emotional, sustainable medium with various unique selling points as a communication channel. In some cases, the economic pressure on print buyers is relatively great. I have no problem if someone doesn't print for cost reasons. What I find difficult is when clients argue with sustainability reasons and therefore switch to electronic channels. That's greenwashing.

Why is it worthwhile for a print shop to submit projects in one of the four categories "Printed Matters," "Printed Objects," "Books" and "Publications"?

Because it's an "honest thing" in all categories. It's not just about celebrating beautiful print products, but showing the possibilities of print communication. We have an experienced and independently acting jury that puts quality and originality before quantity and "nepotism". These points were decisive for us when we took on the Swiss Print Award. We as an association are only responsible for the organization - the jury continues to act completely independently.

There is also a special prize awarded, the "Peter Grob Prize", what is this prize awarded for?

As in the past, the Peter Grob Prize will be awarded to a graphic arts company that has stood out for its outstanding achievements in terms of quality and creativity. However, we cannot say for sure whether the prize will also be awarded in 2023; that is the decision of the jury alone.