Hollywood, Fla. - Entrants for A.R.E.'s 2013 Design Awards no longer have to wait to learn if their design will take home an award for the industry's most prestigious design competition. All winners have been notified and the excitement ensues as competitors anticipate the announcement of which award their project will receive. Awards will be presented at the 2013 A.R.E. Design Awards held on the opening evening of GlobalShop, April 16, at the Hard Rock Cafe in downtown Chicago. The event will be co-hosted by returning emcee Christine Sturch from Whole Foods Market and industry stalwart Ignaz Gorischek of Neiman Marcus.

It was a record-breaking year for nominations with over 300 designs submitted for various categories such as Service Retailer, Supermarket, Specialty Stores, Department Stores and others. The judges represent some of the industry's most notable players and determined that 69 projects are worthy an award. The evening will conclude with announcements of the most coveted awards, which include Visual Presentation of the Year, Fixture of the Year and Store of the Year.

Additional honorees of the evening will be A.R.E. Above & Beyond and DDI Markopoulos recipients, winners of the PAVE the Way 3D Design Challenge for students, and the DDI Best Booth Awards for exhibitors. Winners will also be recognized in the commemorative A.R.E. Winners Book which is available upon request after April 16. For more information on the competition, winners, judges or joining us at the presentation and celebrating like a retail rock star, visit www.aredesignawards.com.

Source: Association for Retail Environments (A.R.E.)