A career move has turned into a rewarding innovation that is boosting business sales across the country.

Finding herself on the hunt for a new challenge after an illustrious career in advertising, Sarah Connelly embarked upon the task of singlehandedly launching Product of the Year Australia (POY) into the Australian market.

POY is a global awards system, voted for by consumers, that recognises product innovation.  The awards have now been running for 32 years in more than 35 countries.

Starting out in Project Management, Sarah Connelly worked for a large finance institution during Y2K and GST conversions. However, she was always interested in media and advertising and so made the leap from a very lucrative career into a small media house where she halved her salary, but found her passion.

A love for all things media led to an 8-year career in the major publishing houses and culminated in the role of National Advertising Manager on Good Taste magazine, working closely with retail giant Woolworths

In 2006, she accepted the role at media and production house Now Screen and, after maternity leave in 2008, found herself looking for a new challenge. It was at this time that Sarah came across the opportunity to launch POY.

In the first three years, Sarah single-handedly launched and ran the business and recruited Lisa Wilkinson, former TODAY show host, as the award ambassador.  As part of promoting the awards Sarah has appeared on A Current Affair, The Morning Show and Today Tonight.

Fast forward ten years, POY boasts an average of 46 winners in categories spanning food and beverage, household goods, health, beauty and baby care, and are ‘the awards to win’ for new product innovation in Australia.

With global brands such as Unilever and Colgate, large supermarkets including Aldi, IGA and Coles and boutique brands all looking to make their stamp on the market by entering year on year, the award growth has been exponential.

So much so, that Australian-made artisan food brand, Birch & Waite, saw a 33 per cent sales lift after being awarded a POY Award in 2017 for their Rich Tartare Seafood Sauce.

The brand’s success story isn’t alone. In 2016, both Nexcare and Mater Mothers saw a 27 per cent and 55 per cent sales lift respectively; the former for their Blister Waterproof Strips and the latter for their nappies.