Product of the Year USA
Product of the Year USA operates an annual consumer-voted award program that surveys 40,000 American shoppers via Kantar to identify winning products across 40+ CPG categories, licensing winners to use its red seal for two years.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1987
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Product of the Year USA does
Product of the Year USA is a privately held marketing and advertising company that operates an annual consumer-voted award program for product innovation in the United States. The organization is part of the global Product of the Year brand network, which was founded in France in 1987 by former L'OREAL executive Christian LeBret and now operates in over 40 countries; US operations have been running for approximately 18-20 years and are headquartered at 287 Park Avenue South in New York City. Its core offering is a platform-and-services package centered on surveying 40,000 American shoppers annually through research partner Kantar to identify winning products across 40+ categories spanning food and beverage, personal care, household products, pet supplies, and emerging verticals. The 2026 cycle recognized 41 winners.
Product of the Year USA firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Product of the Year USA
- Legal name
- Product of the Year USA
- Website
- https://productoftheyearusa.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1987
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Product of the Year USA operates an annual consumer-voted award program that surveys 40,000 American shoppers via Kantar to identify winning products across 40+ CPG categories, licensing winners to use its red seal for two years.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Product of the Year USA industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Marketing Awards and Consumer Research Services
- akta.pro industry
- Branded Merchandise & Corporate GiftsBusiness & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Promotional Products & Sales Promotion ServicesTrade Show Giveaways & Event PremiumsBusiness & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Promotional Products & Sales Promotion Services
Keywords
Where Product of the Year USA is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Product of the Year USA business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Others
Revenue model
- Brand Entry and Participation Fees: Product of the Year USA generates revenue through fees charged to consumer product brands for entering products into the annual awards program. Entry is followed by finalist fees and winner fees for those who receive the award.
- Winner Licensing (Seal Usage): Winners pay a one-time fee to license the Product of the Year seal for use in marketing communications for two full years, along with inclusion in the national PR campaign.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | One time | Early Bird Entry Fee - Reduced rate for entries received before July 15, 2026 |
| Other | One time | Standard Entry Fee - Standard rate for product qualification |
| One time/ perpetual license | One time | Winner Fee - One-time fee for award winners |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Total Cost for Winning |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Product of the Year USA product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Product of the Year USA operates an annual consumer-voted awards program that surveys 40,000 American shoppers through research partner Kantar to identify the most innovative new products across 40+ categories. Winning brands pay entry fees, finalist fees, and winner licensing fees (totaling $81,000-$83,000) to receive a two-year license to the Product of the Year seal, inclusion in a nationwide PR campaign generating over 1 billion media impressions, and comprehensive Kantar survey analysis.
Product overview
Product of the Year USA is a consumer-voted award program for product innovation, not a single product but rather a platform-and-services offering. The core offering is the annual Product of the Year Awards Program, which surveys 40,000 American shoppers via research partner Kantar to identify winning products across 40+ categories spanning food and beverage, health and beauty, personal care, household products, pet supplies, and more. Winners receive a two-year licensing term on the iconic red POY seal for marketing use and inclusion in a nationwide PR campaign generating over 1 billion media impressions annually. The program also provides winners with comprehensive Kantar survey analysis. The 2026 winners span diverse categories including Kitchen Essentials (Reynolds Kitchens), Hand Soap (Dial), Smokeless Tobacco (FRE Lush), Bathroom Cleaning (Scrubbing Bubbles), Dog Treats (Chewsday), Frozen Dessert (Kinder Bueno), Weed Killer (Spruce), and various food and beverage products.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Product of the Year Awards Program Annual consumer-voted award program that surveys 40,000 American shoppers via research partner Kantar to identify the top innovative new products across 40+ categories including food and beverage, personal care, household products, and pet supplies. Brands pay entry fees, finalist fees, and winner fees to participate and compete for the award.
- POY USA Winner Seal Licensing Two-year licensing of the iconic red Product of the Year seal awarded to winning brands, permitting unlimited use in marketing communications, packaging, and advertising to drive consumer purchase intent.
- National PR Campaign for Winners National public relations campaign included in the winner package, delivering over 1 billion media impressions annually through national and regional broadcast, consumer and trade media, social media, influencer campaigns, and giveaways.
- Kantar Consumer Survey Analysis Comprehensive research analysis of the Kantar consumer survey reporting product performance across seven measures: appeal, satisfaction, advocacy, purchase interest, uniqueness, relevance, and excitement.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 1 billion media impressions generated annually through the national PR campaign
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Product of the Year USA
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Product of the Year USA technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Product of the Year USA partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, primary and secondary.
- KantarcoreKantar is the primary research partner conducting the annual consumer survey of 40,000 American shoppers that determines Product of the Year winners. They are a global leader in product innovation research.
- 5WPRprimaryPR agency partner handling public relations for Product of the Year USA.
- HearstsecondaryMedia partner providing press coverage and exposure for Product of the Year brand and winners.
- EnsembleIQsecondaryTrade media partner providing coverage in retail and consumer goods industry publications.
- People IncsecondaryMedia partner providing press coverage for Product of the Year brand and winners.
- Small Girls PRprimaryPR agency handling press inquiries for Product of the Year USA.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Product of the Year USA competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Circana (formerly IRI): Consumer and retail measurement company providing CPG innovation analytics. Comparable as a research-driven partner to the same CPG brand customers that pay POY USA's winner fees.
- NielsenIQ: Global consumer measurement and research firm that brands rely on for product-launch validation. Comparable as a large-scale consumer-insight provider that competes for the same CPG brand-research dollars.
- Kantar: Global market research firm that runs the Product of the Year consumer survey. Kantar is itself a broad incumbent in consumer innovation research (Product of the Year, BrandZ, Worldpanel) and is the closest large-scale analog to the survey-and-insight engine that powers POY USA.
- Ipsos: Global market research firm with significant consumer-innovation research practice. Comparable in methodology (large-sample consumer surveys) and in selling innovation-validation services to CPG brands.
Direct peers
- Stevie Awards: Operates multiple annual business and product awards programs. Comparable in operating model — paid entry, judging, awards gala, and winner marketing assets — though focused on B2B rather than CPG consumers.
- Red Dot Design Award: International product-design award with paid entry, jury selection, and a winner mark used in marketing. Operates the same 'awards-as-marketing-asset' model that POY USA monetizes for CPG brands.
- Effie Awards: Global marketing-effectiveness awards. Targets the same brand-marketing budget pool (CMO trade marketing and brand teams) and uses a paid-entry, jury-selected award with prestige positioning similar to POY USA.
- Edison Awards: Annual product-innovation awards recognizing innovative new products across categories. Directly comparable as a third-party product-validation award that brands use for marketing leverage.
- Parents' Choice Awards: Consumer-evaluated awards program for children's and family products. Closely mirrors POY USA's consumer-voted methodology and seal-licensing monetization in the kids/baby vertical.
- Good Housekeeping Institute (Hearst): Operates the iconic Good Housekeeping Seal, the most direct competitor to the Product of the Year red seal — both monetize consumer-trusted product-validation marks that winning brands license for use on packaging and marketing.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Product of the Year USA social profiles
Digital presenceProduct of the Year USA financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Product of the Year USA leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Product of the Year USA funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Product of the Year USA M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Product of the Year USA
What does Product of the Year USA do?
Product of the Year USA operates an annual consumer-voted awards program that surveys 40,000 American shoppers through research partner Kantar to identify the most innovative new products across 40+ categories. Winning brands pay entry fees, finalist fees, and winner licensing fees (totaling $81,000-$83,000) to receive a two-year license to the Product of the Year seal, inclusion in a nationwide PR campaign generating over 1 billion media impressions, and comprehensive Kantar survey analysis.
Is Product of the Year USA a public or private company?
Product of the Year USA is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Product of the Year USA founded?
Product of the Year USA was founded in 1987. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Product of the Year USA based?
Product of the Year USA is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Product of the Year USA make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Brand Entry and Participation Fees are the primary driver. The others are winner Licensing (Seal Usage).
Who are Product of the Year USA's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Circana (formerly IRI), NielsenIQ, Kantar and Ipsos. Direct peers are Stevie Awards, Red Dot Design Award, Effie Awards, Edison Awards, Parents' Choice Awards and Good Housekeeping Institute (Hearst).
Does Product of the Year USA have an API?
No public API is recorded for Product of the Year USA.
What industry is Product of the Year USA in?
Product of the Year USA's product category is Marketing Awards and Consumer Research Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAMAA, Branded Merchandise & Corporate Gifts, with a secondary code of BPAFAMAG, Trade Show Giveaways & Event Premiums.