Merch of the Year 2026
Note on language. This is an English translation provided for information. The legally binding version of these rules is the Hungarian one, available at Nevezési szabályzat és ÁSZF. In the event of any discrepancy between the two, the Hungarian version prevails.
This document sets out the conditions for entering the Merch of the Year 2026 professional award and the rules of the service contract created by an entry. The Entrant must read this document before submitting the entry declaration. By ticking the relevant checkbox on the entry form, the Entrant declares that they have read and accept these conditions.
1. Details of the Organiser and service provider
Name: DAIGE Korlátolt Felelősségű Társaság (DAIGE Kft.; hereinafter: the Organiser)
Registered seat: 1115 Budapest, Thallóczy Lajos utca 27., Hungary
Postal address: 1052 Budapest, Petőfi tér 3-5., 2nd floor 6., Hungary
Company registration number: 01-09-337355
Tax number: 26652975-2-43
Registering court: Company Court of the Budapest-Capital Regional Court
Email: contact@obiristudio.com
Phone: +36 30 594 0601
Hosting infrastructure: Tárhely.Eu Szolgáltató Kft., 1144 Budapest, Ormánság utca 4. X/241., Hungary; company registration number: 01-09-909968; phone: +36 1 789 2789; tarhely.eu
OBIRI Studio is a brand name used by the Organiser, not a separate legal entity. The website and the entry system are operated by DAIGE Kft., and the entry contract is concluded with DAIGE Kft.
2. Nature, purpose and timeline of the award
2.1. Merch of the Year 2026 is a professional award that evaluates the strategic, creative, design and execution quality of delivered corporate or organisational merchandise projects. The award is not a prize draw: placements are determined by a professional jury on the basis of criteria published in advance, and winning does not depend on chance.
2.2. The entry fee is consideration for the administration and professional evaluation of the entry. It is not a bet or a stake, and paying it does not secure a placement or a prize.
2.3. The timeline of the award, in all cases in the Europe/Budapest time zone:
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Entries open | 24 July 2026 |
| Deadline for the early bird fee to arrive | 14 August 2026, 23:59:59 |
| Deadline for entry and upload of materials | 31 August 2026, 23:59:59 |
| Jury evaluation | 1-10 September 2026 |
| Publication of the shortlist | 13 September 2026 |
| Announcement of results | by 20 September 2026 at the latest |
2.4. If the Organiser holds an award ceremony, Entrants will be informed separately of its date, venue and conditions of attendance. Placement and entitlement to a prize do not depend on attending in person.
3. Who may enter
3.1. Entries may be submitted by companies, business organisations, sole traders, institutions, associations, foundations and other organisations with legal capacity operating in Hungary, by brand owners, by agencies, designers or manufacturers involved in delivering the project, and by individual creative professionals, provided the entry is made in the course of their business, professional or self-employed activity.
3.2. Private individuals may not enter as consumers: a natural person may enter only in the course of their trade, self-employed occupation or business activity, and solely in that professional capacity. The entry contract is not a consumer contract; the consumer right of withdrawal under Government Decree 45/2014 (II. 26.) does not apply.
3.3. The natural person submitting the entry declares that they are entitled to submit the entry and to commit to the entry fee and, where the entry is made on behalf of an organisation, that they are authorised to represent the Entrant. The Organiser may request proof of representation where justified.
3.4. Both the client and the deliverer of a project may enter, but only one independent competition entry may take part from the same project. In the case of multiple entries the Organiser will initiate a discussion and may merge the entries or suspend them until entitlement is proven. Section 11 governs refunds of the entry fee in such cases.
3.5. The Organiser, the jury members, and the organisations they represent or that contributed to a given project may not take part in evaluating their own projects affected by a conflict of interest. The organisation of a jury member may only enter if that jury member recuses themselves from evaluating the entire entry and impartial evaluation can otherwise be ensured.
3.6. Where the Entrant is an individual creative professional or a sole trader, they warrant on entering that they hold all usage and other rights in the submitted project that are necessary for the entry and for the use set out in section 10, including the consent of the client, the employer and any other party involved in delivering the project.
4. Eligible projects
4.1. A merchandise project may be entered if it was actually delivered between 30 June 2025 and 30 June 2026 – both dates inclusive – and at least its first production run was completed. A mere concept, visual plan, prototype that did not go into production, or future plan may not be entered.
4.2. An Entrant may enter with more than one project. Each project is a separate entry with a separate entry fee.
4.3. A project may be assigned to several categories within the same entry, so selecting multiple categories does not in itself create an additional entry fee.
4.4. The categories available:
Brand Awareness;
Community Building;
Employee Experience;
Partner & Client Gifting;
Event Merchandise;
Collaboration of the Year;
Best Product Innovation;
Other, a category briefly named by the Entrant.
4.5. On professional grounds and having notified the Entrant, the Organiser may reassign a project to another category, merge categories, or close a category without an award where the number or standard of entries is insufficient. The 1st to 3rd places announced in this award are overall placements among all valid entries; naming a category does not in itself mean a separate category prize.
5. The entry and formation of the contract
5.1. Entry is an electronic, two-step process:
the Entrant provides the basic details of the organisation and the contact person on the website, accepts these conditions and then proceeds to the payment page;
after the entry fee has been paid successfully, the Entrant provides the project and billing details and uploads the complete entry materials via a link received by email.
5.2. Submitting the entry form constitutes the Entrant’s contractual offer. The Organiser confirms receipt electronically without undue delay, and no later than within 48 hours. The automatic technical confirmation evidences receipt but does not certify that the project is valid in substance or in form.
5.3. The contract is formed when the confirmation of successful payment of the entry fee becomes accessible to the Entrant. The contract is concluded electronically in Hungarian and is not put into writing. The Organiser retains the master data and confirmation of the entry, but the contract cannot be retrieved as a separately filed document. These conditions can be saved and printed.
5.4. Before submitting, the Entrant may freely correct data entry errors in the form fields. After submission, corrections may be requested at contact@obiristudio.com; changes affecting the substance of the project are only possible until the entry deadline and with the Organiser’s approval.
5.5. An entry becomes eligible for evaluation once the full fee and the complete entry materials have arrived by the deadline and any missing items have been supplied. The Organiser sends a separate confirmation of finalisation.
6. The entry materials
6.1. The complete entry materials consist of:
the requested details of the Entrant, the contact person, the project and billing;
the name of the project and its category or categories;
a presentation of up to 10 pages in PDF, PPT or PPTX format; a KEY file is only acceptable if the upload interface expressly allows it;
a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 15 photos that meaningfully present the delivered project;
optionally, a link to a video or campaign material.
6.2. The presentation should cover at least the project, its business or brand-building goal, its target audience, the connection between the brand and that audience, the merchandise concept, the rationale for the choice of product categories, and – where available – the results.
6.3. Entry materials may be submitted in Hungarian or in English. Files or links that are password protected, corrupted, contain malicious code, require access permission, or are unavailable during the judging period count as incomplete materials.
6.4. The Entrant is responsible for checking that the upload succeeded and that the files are readable. If no upload confirmation is received within 24 hours, the Entrant must notify the Organiser before the deadline expires.
7. Entry fee, payment and invoicing
7.1. The entry fee per project:
| Fee | Net amount | VAT | Gross amount | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early bird | HUF 35,000 | HUF 9,450 | HUF 44,450 | the full amount arrives by 14 August 2026, 23:59:59 |
| Standard fee | HUF 45,000 | HUF 12,150 | HUF 57,150 | arrives after the early bird deadline, by 31 August 2026, 23:59:59 at the latest |
7.2. Early bird eligibility is determined by when the payment arrives, not by when the form was started or submitted. For card payments the time of the successful transaction applies; for bank transfers, the time the amount is credited to the Organiser’s account.
7.3. For card payments, card data is handled by the payment service provider named on the payment page; the Organiser has no access to full card data. Bank transfer may only be chosen where the payment process offers it; the cost of the transfer is borne by the Entrant.
7.4. The Organiser issues an electronic invoice based on the billing details provided and sends it to the Entrant’s email address. The Entrant accepts electronic invoicing and is responsible for the accuracy of the billing details.
7.5. The fee covers administration of the entry, the formal check, the professional judging of a valid entry, and communication of the result. Coverage in the award communication only takes place with the separate permission under section 10; its absence does not reduce the entry fee.
8. Formal check, supplementing an entry and exclusion
8.1. The Organiser may return an entry to be supplemented, or exclude it, where it is incomplete, late, does not meet the project or file requirements, the fee has not arrived, it contains untrue or misleading data, its content is unlawful, or it infringes the rights or trade secrets of a third party.
8.2. Where the missing item can be supplied without prejudice to the deadlines, the Organiser may grant a grace period of at least 2 working days, but no more than 1 working day once judging has begun. Supplementing an entry may not amount to replacing the project in substance.
8.3. Before exclusion – except in cases of obvious bad faith, serious infringement or an objectively irremediable missed deadline – the Organiser briefly states the reason and gives the Entrant an opportunity to submit their position.
8.4. Exclusion does not affect the right of the Organiser or of a third party to claim damages or enforce claims.
9. Judging and results
9.1. Valid entries are evaluated by a professional jury invited by the Organiser. The list of jury members may be published on the website or in the announcement of results.
9.2. The evaluation criteria:
how clear the business or brand-building goal is;
the strategic role of the merchandise;
creativity and originality;
quality of the design;
how well the product choice is justified;
quality of execution;
the fit between the brand and the target audience;
usability;
innovation;
complexity of delivery;
the results achieved, where the Entrant has presented them.
9.3. The order in which the criteria are listed does not imply automatic weighting. The jury forms its position with regard to the nature of the project, applying a consistent professional standard. Before judging, the Organiser may issue an internal scoring sheet and scoring scheme, which may not override the published criteria.
9.4. Jury members must declare any personal, employment, mandate, ownership or project relationship that may affect their impartiality, and may not take part in evaluating the entry concerned. The score or vote of an excluded jury member may not be counted.
9.5. In the event of a tie, the jury members who are free of any conflict of interest decide by professional discussion and a further vote. If no decision is reached this way, the jury may declare a shared placement; this does not automatically increase the total value of the prizes, and how they are divided must be discussed with those concerned.
9.6. The professional decision of the jury is final within the award, and no professional review or rescoring may be requested. This does not limit the Entrant’s right to make a complaint or bring a legal claim regarding a procedural breach, a conflict of interest, payment of the fee, a refund or another contractual matter.
9.7. The Organiser may publish, as a matter of fact, the name of the shortlisted and winning organisation, the name of the project, the category, the placement and the year. Publishing this minimum result data is part of conducting the award as intended. Publishing photos, extracts from a presentation, videos or a detailed case study requires the permission under section 10.
10. Copyright, likeness, trade secrets and communication
10.1. The Entrant warrants that it is entitled to use the submitted text, images, graphics, presentation, video, trade marks and other content for the purposes of the entry; that they do not infringe the copyright, industrial property, personality, likeness or data protection rights of any third party; and that they do not contain trade secrets disclosed without authorisation.
10.2. Where an entry is submitted by an agency, manufacturer or designer, they must hold the permission of the client and of any other material rightholders. The prize is awarded, as a rule, to the organisation named as Entrant on the entry form; creative and contributor credits are to be shown on the basis of the data submitted.
10.3. By submitting the entry, the Entrant grants the Organiser a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence, valid until 90 days after the close of the award, for the territory of Hungary and for secure online access by the jury, to reproduce and display the complete entry materials internally and make them accessible to the jury, solely for the purposes of administration, verification of eligibility, judging, handling disputes and archiving.
10.4. A separate, voluntary licence may be granted for the public communication of the award. Where it is granted, the Entrant grants the Organiser a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence for a term of five years to reproduce, distribute, communicate to the public and make available online the selected project materials in connection with the award and with OBIRI Studio’s professional communication, and to resize, crop, caption and convert them as technically necessary. Substantive adaptation that changes the meaning of the project requires separate permission.
10.5. In its communication, the Organiser states the name of the project and of the Entrant and reasonably preserves the creative credits provided by the Entrant. The Entrant acknowledges that the Organiser has no full control over further sharing by social media platforms or press outlets.
10.6. Withdrawing the communication licence does not affect use that was lawful up to the point of withdrawal. Following withdrawal, the Organiser removes the detailed project materials from digital surfaces under its own control within a reasonable period of no more than 30 days, but is not obliged to recall publications already lawfully printed or content independently taken up by third parties. The factual result data of winners and the shortlist may remain published under section 9.7.
10.7. The jury and the Organiser’s contributors treat non-public materials as confidential. Even so, the Entrant should not upload technological, manufacturing, pricing or other trade secrets that are not necessary for the professional evaluation, and should mark clearly confidential parts in the presentation.
10.8. In the event of a third-party claim, the Entrant must cooperate in bringing the infringement to an end and – where the claim is attributable to a breach of the Entrant’s warranty – reimburse the Organiser’s substantiated, reasonable damages and costs.
11. Withdrawal, refunds and changes to the award
11.1. The Entrant may withdraw its entry in writing until 31 August 2026, 23:59:59. If professional evaluation has not yet begun, the Organiser refunds the entry fee paid within 30 days, using the original payment method where possible.
11.2. From 1 September 2026, once judging has begun, the entry fee is not refundable if the Entrant withdraws. No refund is due because a project is not shortlisted or does not win, or where an entry is excluded because of an irregularity or infringement attributable to the Entrant that was not remedied.
11.3. If the Organiser cancels the award or does not carry out the professional judging, it refunds the full entry fee within 30 days. Beyond this, the Entrant may only bring a claim for a breach of contract attributable to the Organiser, in accordance with the applicable law.
11.4. Where justified, the Organiser may change the timeline, the categories or the technical means of running the award. Material changes are communicated by email and on the website. In the case of a material change that is detrimental to an already finalised entry, the Entrant may withdraw and request a refund within 5 days, before judging begins.
11.5. In the event of force majeure – in particular a natural event, an epidemiological or official restriction, a utility or telecommunications outage, a cyber incident, or a wartime or extraordinary economic event – the Organiser will first seek to make reasonable changes to the dates or the manner of performance. In the event of lasting impossibility, it proceeds in accordance with section 11.3.
12. Prizes and their fulfilment
12.1. The prizes are professional recognitions together with in-kind product and service packages. Their estimated net value is indicative; they cannot be exchanged for cash and may only be transferred to a third party with the Organiser’s prior written consent.
12.2. 1st place – Merch of the Year 2026 Grand Prize, estimated net value HUF 1.5-2 million:
a merchandise strategy and concept workshop;
design and development of a custom merchandise collection;
a first production run within the agreed technical specification and budget;
2 tickets to the POV conference;
featured professional coverage, within the scope of the communication licence under section 10.
12.3. 2nd place – OBIRI Studio Merch Voucher, with a net budget of HUF 1 million:
concept, design and development of one custom merchandise product;
a production run of 30 pieces within the agreed specification and budget;
2 tickets to the POV conference.
12.4. 3rd place – Limited Edition Tote Bag package, estimated net value HUF 500,000-700,000:
20 limited edition tote bags designed in OBIRI Studio’s visual language;
2 tickets to the POV conference.
12.5. Every shortlisted Entrant is entitled to a Merch of the Year capsule collection, the exact contents and manner of handover of which the Organiser sets out when announcing the results.
12.6. Within 30 days of the announcement of results, the winner and the Organiser agree in writing on the development brief, the technical scope, quantities, schedule, approval points and delivery. The prize budget does not include additional requirements, which the parties price separately during that discussion. Delay by the winner in providing data or approvals extends the delivery time accordingly.
12.7. If a particular material, production technology, conference ticket or other element of a prize is unavailable for reasons outside the Organiser’s control, the Organiser will, after prior discussion, offer a substitute of at least similar purpose and comparable value. This does not entitle the winner to a cash payment.
12.8. The winner is responsible for accounting for the prize, for its internal use and for the tax obligations applicable to it. The Organiser fulfils the invoicing, documentation, reporting or withholding obligations imposed on it by law, and may request data from the winner for that purpose.
12.9. Entitlement to a prize may lapse if the winner does not respond to contact within 30 days, refuses the cooperation required for fulfilment despite repeated requests, or is subsequently shown not to have been eligible to enter. In such cases the Organiser may, but is not obliged to, offer the prize to the next placed entrant.
13. Liability and technical operation
13.1. The Organiser operates the entry interface with the care that can reasonably be expected of it, but does not guarantee uninterrupted availability over the internet. The consequences of the Entrant’s own device, internet connection, email system, incorrect data or late upload are borne by the Entrant.
13.2. In the case of a substantiated malfunction in the Organiser’s own systems, the Organiser grants a proportionate grace period where the fault materially prevented submission before the deadline. The Entrant must report the fault immediately, with a screenshot and the time.
13.3. The Organiser is not liable for indirect damage or lost profit, except where the law prohibits limiting liability. The Organiser’s contractual liability for damages is capped at the entry fee paid for the project concerned, except for breaches committed intentionally or causing harm to human life, physical integrity or health, and other cases where liability cannot be limited by law.
13.4. The Entrant may only submit genuine, lawful material that can be shared securely. The Organiser is entitled to delete a malicious file or one presenting a security risk without opening it, and to request that it be replaced.
14. Complaints and enforcement
14.1. Complaints may be submitted by email to contact@obiristudio.com or by post to DAIGE Kft., 1052 Budapest, Petőfi tér 3-5., 2nd floor 6., Hungary. So that a complaint can be identified, it should contain the name of the Entrant and the project, the contact details, the subject of the complaint, the action requested and any available evidence.
14.2. The Organiser investigates complaints without undue delay and responds in writing, as a rule within 30 days. The parties will primarily seek to settle any dispute by discussion.
14.3. Since entry is only possible in a non-consumer capacity, conciliation board proceedings under consumer protection law and the specific rules applicable to consumer complaints do not, as a rule, apply.
14.4. If discussion is unsuccessful, the dispute may be settled before the Hungarian court having jurisdiction and competence under Hungarian law. The parties do not stipulate exclusive jurisdiction other than as provided by law.
15. Final provisions
15.1. The Organiser may amend these rules. Amendments take effect upon publication. An amendment detrimental to an already finalised entry may only be applied with the Entrant’s acceptance, or by granting the right of withdrawal under section 11.4.
15.2. If any provision is invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in force; the provision concerned is to be replaced by the rule closest to its lawful purpose.
15.3. Matters not regulated here are governed in particular by Act V of 2013 on the Civil Code, Act CVIII of 2001 on Electronic Commerce Services, Act LXXVI of 1999 on Copyright, the GDPR, the Hungarian Information Act, Act C of 2000 on Accounting, and Act CXXVII of 2007 on Value Added Tax.
15.4. The processing of personal data is described in the separate Privacy Policy. In respect of this service, the Organiser has not subjected itself to a code of conduct.