Display artichokes and increase sales and profits. Let your imagination soar. Artichokes star at tailgate and Halloween parties and they’re traditional favorites at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Hanukkah.

Competition was stiff and the enthusiasm was great! We qualified more than 70 submissions and had sufficient entries from each of the five regions to select fully qualified displays. The judging was so close in two of the regions that we awarded duplicate prizes.

Congratulations to the following winners:

Region 1:   It’s a big region with some tough competition. Our winner went all out. Dale Hughes, Carrs Quality Centers, Anchorage, Alaska, proudly displays his handiwork. Notice the use of the video?

Region 2:   Two co-winners gave their customers some great reasons for trying artichokes and touted convincing figures for giant sales. Lyndon P. Nelson, Festival Foods, Virginia, Minnesota, was a master at cross-merchandising and at displaying artichokes in two different sections of his store. Tim Rank, Rainbow Foods, Forest Lake, Minnesota, gave everyone a Giant Artichoke to remember and some convincing figures for giant sales.

Region 3:   This is a region ripe for growth in artichoke sales. Sometimes it just takes a sense of fun to win over a few more customers—and a display contest. Marilyn Monroe is perhaps the most famous artichoke queen, having made an appearance with artichoke industry members in 1948. Joey McRee, Bruno’s, Mobile, Alabama, celebrated this historical association with his informative display.

Region 4:   Again, two co-winners are indicative of the enthusiasm of contest submissions in this geographical area. Ken Dower, Stop & Shop, East Haven, Connecticut, intices his customers with "A Little Taste of Heaven" a first-class display of high-quality artichokes. Kudos for ingenuity and high spirits go to Karen Novak, McAnnis Sisters, Monroeville, Pennsylvania. Girls will be girls—and these gals added "attitude" to their display with James Dean and Bogie cut-outs. In addition, they held a customer recipe contest and hosted demos with the local vegetarian society, local chefs and fancy food entrepreneuers.

Region 5:   Big isn’t always best but in this region it was. The winner in this region was also the contest’s Grand Prize Winner! Hats are off to Region 5 and Grand Prize Winner Robert Haliloglu, Kroger Co., Raleigh, North Carolina, who used many tricks of the trade. Note the prominent placement in two areas of the produce department, including an end-aisle display; attention-getting signage; door-busting pricing; and highly visible support of the National 5 a Day Campaign.