Three Australian companies were amongst the winners at this year’s prestigious FESPA Awards ‘celebrating print excellence’ from around the world. This year saw 278 entries from over 30 countries, making the Gold Award from NEXT Printing and Silver Awards from Cactus Imaging and Image Box that much more remarkable.
Before and After shot showing how NEXT Printing scored Gold in the scored Gold in the FESPA Global Awards for transforming the popular Grilled@Galeries Sydney burger joint into Barbie’s Dreamburger Diner
Sydney-based NEXT Printing won Gold in the Display & Packaging on Paper & Board category, for its innovative use of Reboard in the fit-out of burger bar ‘Grill’d The Galeries’ in Sydney, temporarily transformed into Barbie’s Dreamburger Diner to coincide with the launch of the new Barbie movie.
The fitout needed to be strong enough to withstand 5-weeks in a high-traffic restaurant environment, hence the choice of Reboard – an engineered paperboard with the strength of MDF – along with a range of other print materials to further transform windows, floors, tables and columns inside the pink dreamworld.
Romeo Sanuri, Next PrintingNEXT Printing CEO, Romeo Sanuri, says proudly: "Winning this prestigious global FESPA Gold award validates Next Printing's dual commitment to excellence and sustainability. By showcasing our innovative use of Reboard, we've demonstrated that exceptional display solutions can coexist with environmental responsibility.”
“This international recognition affirms our leadership in creating impactful visual communications while consciously reducing our environmental footprint—proving that premium quality and planet-friendly practices go hand in hand."
As the longest-standing and only independent awards for the print and signage sector, the FESPA Awards are renowned for setting the benchmark for excellence. They offer businesses the ultimate platform to showcase their work and gain global recognition. The official Award Ceremony for the 2025 Awards took place on the afternoon of the third day of the show at the Messe Berlin. Five specialty awards were also announced, including the:
- Innovation Award, presented to P&P Promotion in Italy, for its entries into the Direct Printing on Three Dimensional Products category.
- People’s Choice Award, voted for online by the FESPA global print and signage community, and taken out this year by Ekostand – a biodegradable display in Poland entered into the Display and Packaging on Paper and Board category (this entry also won the Sustainability Award!).
- Young Star Award, which an Art-Industrial student won for his end-of-year final school project (Heads). 
This year's winning Young Star Award entry
- Best In Show Award, selected as the most outstanding example of print and awarded to Iwaarden in The Netherlands for its ‘Rebranding Office Odido’ entry in the Printeriors category.
- Distinction Award, new to 2025 and presented to Visix Brand Shiners from Belgium for its Project Focus entry in the roll-to-roll printed textiles category.
Other Australian winners included silver award recognition both for Sydney’s Cactus Imaging and Melbourne-based Image Box.
The full list of the FESPA Awards winners and runners-up will be available later this week at http://www.fespaawards.com/
Entries to the 2027 FESPA Awards will open in July 2025.
