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| Overview |
Eligibility |
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Held once every three years in Dusseldorf, Germany, EuroShop sets the tone for the stand- and retail-design industries. Featuring inventive materials, unique concepts, and one-off creations, the trade fair offers endless inspiration for exhibit and event professionals the world over. As the official stand design competition endorsed by EuroShop, EXHIBITOR Magazine's EuroShop Awards honor the most impressive stands this trend-setting show has to offer. |
All trade show stands at EuroShop 2026 are automatically entered in the competition free of charge and judged on site during the show. |
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| Categories |
Stands are evaluated according to the following five sized-based categories:
- XS: 17 or Fewer sqm.
- Small: 18 – 30 sqm.
- Medium: 31 – 49 sqm.
- Large: 50 – 88 sqm.
- XL: More Than 89 sqm.
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Judges
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The competition will be judged by this international panel of esteemed marketing and design experts.
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Kevin Carty
executive vice president, Classic Exhibits Inc.
Portland, OR, USA
A 29-year veteran of the exhibit design and production industry, Kevin Carty is the executive vice president of Classic Exhibits Inc. He has led the firm from a small, five-person, exhibit-build operation at its start to a nationally known and respected experiential design and production organization with more than 85 employees and 600-plus distributor selling partners worldwide.
Carty has served as a director on the Board of the Experiential Designers and Producers Association (EDPA) for 10 years and as a director on the Board of the National Tradeshow Alliance (NTSA). He has also served on many subcommittees and boards for the EDPA, Trade Show Exhibitors Association (TSEA), NTSA, and EXHIBITORLIVE. During his tenure, Classic Exhibits has been awarded countless Exhibit Design Award as well as four People’s Choice Awards at EXHIBITORLIVE.
Michael Chrystal
CEO and founder, Forum Your Brand Builder GmbH
Solingen, Germany
Michael Chrystal is a veteran of the exhibition industry and the CEO and founder of Forum Your Brandbuilder GmbH, a Solingen, Germany-based agency that brings brands to life through innovative physical, hybrid, and digital concepts.
His creative signature can be found on top international projects for brands such as E.ON, Lenovo, Motorola, Midea, Haier, IWC, X Peng, Edding, Unger, Sumitomo, and many others. But his work goes far beyond individual brands, as Chrystal has played a key role in shaping the national pavilions showcased on the world’s biggest stages.
With his visionary approach and boundless creativity, he sets new benchmarks in the industry, crafting extraordinary experiences that deliver a unique brand experience.
Giulia Curti
store design and creative environments, Timberland
Stabio, Switzerland
Giulia Curti is a store design and creative environments professional for the Timberland brand. She collaborates closely with cross-functional teams to develop creative solutions that balance aesthetics, brand identity, and cost-efficiency. She’s passionate about transforming retail spaces into engaging brand touchpoints.
Josh Frisbie
vice president of creative, Hamilton
Indianapolis, IN, USA
For more than 20 years, Josh Frisbie has led Hamilton’s award-winning multidisciplinary creative team, focusing on magnifying customer brands through unique immersive experiences. Frisbie oversees Hamilton’s in-house creative experiential studio, StudioH. Under his leadership, StudioH develops campaigns and experiences designed to evoke emotional connectivity with audiences, driving exceptional outcomes.
Frisbie maintains a deliberate emphasis on desired customer outcomes and understands how innovative design can support achieving those outcomes. He challenges his creative team and Hamilton’s customers to go the extra mile and stand out with innovative strategy and design, ensuring that Hamilton remains a leader in delivering memorable solutions.
Christian Herbstreuth
freelance art director
Stuttgart, Germany
Christian Herbstreuth has been working as an independent art director and freelancer since 2012. Prior to this time, he spent many years at various agencies as a museum and exhibition designer, print and online designer, and provider of artworks.
Today, as a freelancer for agencies, he implements, among other things, large trade fair projects, showrooms, and live events for international customers. His focus is on design and final artwork as well as motion design for live events.
Pauline Hilbrink
CEO, Expovorm International
Almelo, The Netherlands
Pauline Hilbrink has been a designer for more than 24 years and has been the managing director of Expovorm International for the past nine years. She leads with a strong focus on concept development, circular design thinking, and sustainability. Under her leadership, the company has received multiple international awards for innovative and modular exhibition concepts that are both creative and future-proof.
Andreas Horbelt
chief creative officer, Facts and Fiction GmbH
Cologne, Germany
As the creative director and a member of the management board, Andreas Horbelt heads the creation unit at Facts and Fiction GmbH and networks with individual partners for major projects. Responsible for the artistic direction, he is the client’s first point of contact for all questions relating to creation and conception.
Originally from the theatre world, Horbelt has been working as a conceptual designer in design offices for almost 20 years and has been leading multidisciplinary teams as a creative director for more than 10 years. His personal expertise as a dramaturge lies in the development of the central theme for an exhibition, as well as in the conception of analogue and digital mediation for exhibits. He is also an experienced copywriter and has been involved in exhibition projects on a wide variety of topics, both for public and private exhibitions.
Stan Kruss
founder and CEO, Expo Centric
Sydney, Australia
Stan Kruss is the visionary founder and CEO of Expo Centric, a leading full-service experiential marketing agency based in Sydney, Australia. Established in 2009, Expo Centric has grown under Kruss’ leadership to become a prominent player in the exhibition and events industry.
With a keen eye for innovation, Kruss has collaborated with some of the world's most iconic brands across various sectors, including Tesla, Volvo, Canon, Sony, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Dior, and Singapore Airlines. His projects have spanned multiple continents, reflecting his global perspective and commitment to excellence.
Kruss’ journey began with a desire to revolutionize the exhibition industry by addressing issues of waste and unnecessary costs. This led him to explore innovative solutions, such as partnering with Aluvision in Belgium to introduce high-quality modular framing systems to the Australian market, enhancing both efficiency and sustainability in exhibition stand construction.
Under his guidance, Expo Centric has expanded its operations, including the recent establishment of a new office in Metro Manila, Philippines. This strategic move aims to enhance the company's ability to serve both Australian brands looking to exhibit internationally and global brands with a presence in multiple countries.
Throughout his career, Kruss has been recognized for his contributions to the industry, including being named an Anthill 30 under 30 Winner for innovation in Australia and receiving the SmartCompany Smart 30 Under 30 award for young Australian entrepreneurs. Expo Centric's rapid growth and success were acknowledged when the company was listed on the BRW Fast 100, highlighting its position as one of Australia's fastest-growing companies. The company has also garnered numerous accolades, including the Best Reconfigurable Exhibit at the 11th Annual Portable/Modular Awards for the firm’s innovative work with TAFE NSW. Kruss continues to lead Expo Centric with a focus on sustainability, innovation, and excellence, ensuring that brands can connect authentically with their customers at every touchpoint.
Jody Milton
CEO and co-founder, Formation Global
Temple Grafton, Warwickshire, United Kingdom
Jody Milton is the CEO and co-founder at Formation Global, a leading specialist in designing and building business brand activations. With more than 25 years of experience across design, events, exhibitions, experiential marketing, and branded interiors, he leads a global team of more than 60 design, event, brand, and build specialists across offices in the United Kingdom, Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Poland.
As an award-winning creative designer, he has delivered high-impact marketing activations for brands such as Oracle, Nvidia, Ford, Apple, Adidas, Procter & Gamble, Philips, Sennheiser, BT, JP Morgan, and Sony. He’s also the creator of ecoform, a sustainable modular build solution shaping the future of events.
Michela Moretti
creative engineer, Bloom
Bergeijk, Netherlands
Michela Moretti is an industrial designer and design engineer specializing in the development of experiential and spatial environments. With a background in large-scale projects such as cruise ship experience areas and design exhibitions, she brings a strong understanding of how people interact with space and form. Her work focuses on transforming creative concepts into tangible, buildable solutions that balance aesthetics, functionality, and feasibility.
Driven by a passion for physical interaction and visual perception, Moretti bridges the gap between design intent and technical realization: from detailed engineering to supplier coordination and on-site execution. Her experience includes contributions to The Harbour for MSC Cruises and Sekisui Beyond at Milan Design Week 2025. Combining technical precision with a sensitivity to human experience, she approaches retail and exhibition design as opportunities to craft environments that engage, guide, and inspire.
Heike Schaffernicht
managing director, KirRoyal Kommunikation im Raum GmbH
Hamburg, Germany
Heike Schaffernicht is a seasoned design professional with more than two decades of experience. Her expertise spans strategy, concept development, design, brand space, project management, and 3D visualization. Currently, she’s the managing director at KirRoyal Kommunikation im Raum GmbH. However, prominent roles also include being head of brand space design at Voss+Fischer GmbH and a member of the management board at MIKS GmbH.
Early in her career, she contributed as a senior and junior designer in various firms and engaged in freelance exhibition design for notable institutions like the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. Throughout her work, Schaffernicht has been recognized for her excellence in design, receiving prestigious awards such as the 1998 Lucky Strike Junior Design Award and the iF Award IMM for her diploma thesis on a trade fair stand for Moormann. She is also a member of the Art Directors Club, reflecting her commitment to professional development and industry leadership.
Nina Thomas
freelance art director
Dusseldorf, Germany
Nina Thomas works as a freelance art director specializing in spatial communication in Düsseldorf. She studied visual communication in Aachen and, after graduating, spent many years in Barcelona, where she worked as a graphic designer for national and international agencies and clients.
Back in Germany, she increasingly specialized in spatial design at studios such as D'art Design, Studio Bachmannkern, and Jangled Nerves. She works with brands such as AEG, Henkel, Braun, Schüco, the Lower Saxony State Exhibition, the Landschaftsverband Rheinland, and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. Her various awards include the Red Dot Award, an iF Design Award, and an ADC Bronze Nagel, among others.
Satoru Utashiro
creative director, Hakuten Corp.
Tokyo
Satoru Utashiro began his career at Hakuten Corp. as a spatial designer, delivering numerous projects including exhibition booths, events, and showrooms. After serving as head of the design division, he now works as a creative director, engaging in a broad range of creative initiatives — from brand management at major exhibitions to comprehensive corporate branding.
His work has been recognized with many domestic and international awards, including honors from EXHIBITOR magazine, the iF Design Award (Germany), the Good Design Award (Japan), and Design for Asia (Hong Kong).
In addition, Utashiro established his own studio, Satoru Utashiro Design, where he oversees every stage of product development, from concept and design to sales. His work in this field has earned him multiple accolades, such as the Grand Prix at the Shachihata New Product Design Competition and the Tokyo Business Design Award Grand Prix. Drawing on his firsthand experience in branding and marketing as an entrepreneur, he specializes in creating branding strategies and experiential designs rooted in a client’s business perspective.
Katina Zipay
creative director, Classic Exhibits Inc.
Portland, OR, USA
Katina Zipay is the creative director at Classic Exhibits Inc. and was among the first cohorts to graduate with an MA in Exhibition Design from FIT. She views 3-D experiences as the most impactful art form and enjoys turning event spaces into large-scale sculptures that serve a functional purpose. Zipay and the team she directs consistently deliver award-winning designs for their clients.
From 2014 to 2022, Zipay was director of the non-profit Women In Exhibitions. Her leadership helped turn simple annual meetings into well-attended events with high production quality. Additionally, she created a mentorship program, built a large base of financial sponsors, and led numerous networking and educational Zoom events. Upon stepping down, she established a board of directors to continue that important work.
In 2021, Zipay joined the National Board of Directors for the Experiential Designers and Producers Association (EDPA), where she focuses on building partnerships between the experiential design industry and academic institutions. In 2023, she joined the FIT EED Advisory Board, and in 2025 she joined the Experiential Design Authority U.S. Advisory Board. She also won the EDPA’s Designer of the Year award and Future Leader award in 2020, and she took home FIT’s STAR Award in 2022.
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Contact Linda Armstrong,
[email protected]
People's Choice Award
Finalists are announced and notified during the show, and EuroShop attendees and exhibitors then vote for their favorite designs at
www.ExhibitorOnline.com/VoteEuroShop. The three entries with the most votes receive Gold,
Silver, and Bronze Awards in the People's Choice Award portion of the competition. All winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, February 25, 2026.
Perks of Participation
In conjunction with the EuroShop Awards, EXHIBITOR will provide the following free and discounted educational offerings:
- Free one-year digital magazine subscription for ALL exhibitors
- 15% discount off any EXHIBITORLIVE pass for exhibitors and attendees
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