Innovation Excellence Awards
Celebrating the UK’s Communications
& Content Innovators
This year’s Innovation Excellence Awards – the “Award of Awards” for the UK’s communications and content industries – will return to a sell-out audience at the historic Stationers’ Hall on 23 October 2026.
The top honour of Innovator of the Year 2025 was awarded to FabLittleBag for its thoughtfully designed, eco-friendly period-product disposal bags – a bold innovation tackling both plastic pollution and social taboos.
The award was presented by our Guest of Honour, Dr Vanessa Lawrence CB, who emphasised the vital role of creativity and courage in shaping our industries.
Now in its 11th year, the Awards are open to all sectors across communications and content – from packaging, paper-making and print to publishing, stationery, digital-born businesses and beyond.
The judging panel assessed entries on originality, commercial impact, sustainability and positive social or environmental benefit.
Shortlisted 2026
Business Process
- Bakers: BakPac: Re-engineering Flexible Packaging Manufacturing for Speed, Scale and Sustainability
- Fantom Factory: Fast Food needs Fast Answers
- Hahnemühle – My Art Registry
- Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection – protected at print
- Rebel Stationery – Textile Collection 2026 – in partnership with Handmade Palestine
- Romax Marketing & Distribution Ltd – Romax Digital Card Platform
- Shachihata EU – Xstamper QuiX Pre-Inked Stamp Making System
- Westchester Publishing Services – Westchester Publishing Services’ approach to AI generated Alt Text
Communications, including Marketing
- Barley Communications – “Fighting AI cloning scams for National Trading Standards”
- Brainz Digital – Brainz AI
- Inkara.io – Inkara Marketing Studio — including ISBN Emporium, & Meta-Ink
- Publishers Association – Publishers Association Insight series
- The Mills Fabrica – Fabrica X: A Platform for Accelerating Sustainable Innovation in Fashion and Textiles
- Thomas’s London Day Schools – TomCom
Customer Experience
- Class Professional – Ambulance Driving
- Circular Box Solutions (PTY LTD S.A. Trading & LTD (U.K) – CircularBox Solutions™ – The Waterproof, Tear Proof, Collapsible, Ultra Durable Reusable Digital Packaging System
- Eat with Mabel Limited trading as Mabel – Mabel
- Kids Invent Stuff – The Invention Shed
- OMG Center Ltd – Orca
- Romax Marketing & Distribution Ltd – Romax Digital Card Platform
- Shachihata EU – Xstamper QuiX Pre-Inked Stamp Making System
- Thomas’s London Day Schools – TomCom
- Viktrs LTD – Viktrs: Building a Better Business Model for the Future of Video
Education Technology
- Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing Limited – AgNetZero
- Class Professional – Ambulance Driving
- Enterprise Ski ls Ltd – Human Skills Index
- Habitat Learn Group Limited – Podium – an AI-enabled infrastructure solution for Higher Education
- More Handwriting – More Handwriting
- Oodlü – oodlü Worlds
Manufacturing
- Circular Box Solutions (PTY LTD S.A. Trading & LTD (U.K) – CircularBox Solutions™ – The Waterproof, Tear Proof, Collapsible, Ultra Durable Reusable Digital Packaging System
- Clifton Packaging – The British Crisp
- Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection – protected at print
- PulpaTronics – PulpaTronics
- Vivid Laminating Technologies – Razar
- Woolcool – LifeGuardian
Product Design
- ACCO Brands – Leitz IQ OptiMax Shredder
- Circular Box Solutions (PTY LTD S.A. Trading & LTD (U.K) – CircularBox Solutions™ – The Waterproof, Tear Proof, Collapsible, Ultra Durable Reusable Digital Packaging System
- Chespa – ‘Give Them a Chance’
- Clifton Packaging – The British Crisp
- Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection – protected at print
- PulpaTronics – PulpaTronics
- Woolcool – LifeGuardian
Start UP
- Circular Box Solutions (PTY LTD S.A. Trading & LTD (U.K) – CircularBox Solutions™ – The Waterproof, Tear Proof, Collapsible, Ultra Durable Reusable Digital Packaging System
- Eat with Mabel Limited trading as Mabel – Mabel
- Enterprise Ski ls Ltd – Human Skills Index
- PulpaTronics – PulpaTronics
- TheNeverPress – Various Sorrows & Joys
- Viktrs LTD – Viktrs: Building a Better Business Model for the Future of Video
- Wingbinder Limited – The Wingbinder
Our innovator of the year for 2025
FabLittleBag
Product Design
Every day in the UK, 2.5 million tampons and 1.4 million pads are flushed down the toilet, resulting in plastic pollution to rivers, oceans and beaches. FabLittleBag is a sustainably sourced disposable bag that allows period products to be easily binned instead.
Designed to be opened with one hand, the bags are quick and simple to use, seal tight to prevent any odours, and are completely opaque for discreet disposal.
The Awards Winners
Take a look at the individuals and organisations recognised for their outstanding achievements.
Explore the winners below and discover the work, ideas and impact that set them apart.
Start-Up
xigxag Ltd
xigxag Ltd, for digital-audiobook gift cards enabling physical retailers to access the digital market.
Product Design
FabLittleBag
FabLittleBag, for its sustainable, discreet disposal-bag innovation for period products.
Education Technology
VoxBlock
VoxBlock, for a screen-free audiobook system supporting children’s literacy through tactile design.
Customer Experience
Interflex Group Ltd
Interflex Group Ltd, for fully-recyclable paper-based twist-wraps for Quality Street.
Business Process
Aura Consultants
Aura Consultants, for e-halo, a platform enabling brands to manage recyclability, compliance and carbon-impact tracking.
Communications (including Marketing)
Barley Communications
City of London Leaden hall Market & Barley Communications, for Revitalising a Heritage Brand.
Innovation Excellence Awards
The Innovation Excellence Awards are supported by lead sponsors Picon and Pearson, and backed by industry partners including Hobbs the Printers, Enbecom and Castelnau.
Through these Awards, The Stationers’ Company champions innovation in a UK sector worth over £65 billion annually, recognising and connecting the people and ideas at its heart.
