Elkridge, MD (December 23, 2004) - As the year draws to a close, Palisades Toys is proud to honor those business partners who help make 2004 a banner year, with the "2004 Palisades Partnership Awards." For 2004, Palisades has expanded the awards to include eight different categories:- Licensor Partner of the Year
- US Retail Partner of the Year
- US Wholesale Distribution Partner of the Year
- International Retail Partner of the Year
- International Wholesale Distribution Partner of the Year
- On-line Retail Partner of the Year
- Promotional Partner of the Year
- Creative Partner of the Year
The 2004 winners are:
Licensor Partner of the Year - Twentieth Century Fox
"Fox and Palisades have very similar philosophies when it comes to licensed products," said Palisades President & CEO, Michael Horn, "Fox only wants its name attached to the best products, and they're willing to go that extra mile to work with Palisades to get there. This is the relationship that spawned such great products the Alien Facehugger plush, and Buffy and X-Files PALz."
US Retail Partner of the Year - Musicland Group, Inc.
"Musicland won this award in 2003, as well," commented Horn, "And frankly, in terms of support for our line across the board, no one else comes close to Musicland. They support Palisades as a brand, and that's uncommon among mass retailers."
US Wholesale Distribution Partner of the Year - Diamond Comic Distribution
"No US Distributor even comes close to having an infrastructure as effective as Diamond's," said Horn, "They've been in the game for years, and they have the best resources available for getting products to independent retailers. We're proud that we've been able to work with Diamond in 2004 to increase our visibility in Previews, and in turn, to reach more retailers throughout the country."
International Retail Partner of the Year - Silver Snail
"If you ever find yourself in Toronto," commented Horn, "Be sure to check out Silver Snail. It is by far the nicest, most well-organized comic/toy store that I have ever had the good fortune to visit. The staff is friendly and helpful, and somehow they seem to carry virtually everything! If everyone in this industry ran their store like Silver Snail, the face of retail would probably be in a lot better shape than it is."
International Wholesale Distribution Partner of the Year - Blister Direct (Japan)& Gear 4 Games (United Kingdom)
"Both of these companies were awarded 'Partner Awards' in 2003, and I am happy to report that nothing has changed in terms of their stellar support of Palisades," said Horn, "In fact, with the help of these two distributors, Palisades' international presence has increased significantly in the past year!"
On-line Partner of the Year - ActionFigurExpress.com
"ActionFigurExpress.com has been a Palisades customer for a long time," said Horn, "but in 2004, they really moved to the forefront, in terms of showing what an on-line retailer can accomplish. Not only are they moving significant volumes of regular product, but they've actually carried several exclusive Palisades products, too. We expect great things from this on-line retailer in 2005!"
Promotional Partner of the Year - Wizard Entertainment Group
"This award was one of the easiest to decide," commented Horn, "because no one else even comes close to helping promote Palisades the way that Wizard does. From the Wizard Convention tour to the Magazine Exclusives, Wizard is far and away our best promotional partner, hands down."
Creative Partner of the Year - Eddie Wires
"Eddie Wires does a lot of prototype painting for Palisades," explained Horn, "And although he is the best in the industry, we did not decide to give him this award based solely on his artistic merits. Because beyond that, he is simply one of the nicest people you will ever meet in this industry, and he's always willing to go that extra mile to help out Palisades. He has become an invaluable partner."
Each of the nine 2004 "Partnership Award" recipients will receive an engraved plaque, along with a letter of appreciation from Michael Horn. The awards will be given at Toy Fair in February.
ABOUT PALISADES TOYS
Palisades Marketing, LLC ("Palisades Toys") designs, manufactures, and markets a variety of collectable toy products worldwide through sales to retailers and directly to consumers. Palisades Toys believes its products are among the most highly detailed and collectable action figures, PolyStone statues, PolyStone mini busts in the world. Formed in 1994, Palisades' products are sold throughout the world at various retail outlets including Toys "R" Us, KB Toys, Target, Electronics Boutique, Tower Records, Media Play, Sam Goody, Suncoast Video, Amazon.com and a variety of domestic and international comic shops and specialty retailer stores. Palisades Toys' current product portfolio includes The Muppets, Alien, Predator, Transformers, G.I. Joe, Ren & Stimpy, Army of Darkness, Pink Panther, and others. Further information on this and all other Palisades Toys products is available via our company website at: www.PalisadesToys.com.
