Burberry—Presented by Luxottica
 
 State Optical Co.
 
 Prada—Presented by Luxottica

NEW YORK—The Accessories Council announced the winners for their 3rd annual Design Excellence Awards virtually yesterday. Building on its history of honoring individuals and companies, the Accessories Council launched the Design Excellence Awards in 2019 to expand the recognition of outstanding products. Among the 2021 winning products were five optical and sunwear companies and, for the first time, there was a tie in the sunglass category. Among the eyewear winners were Burberry 2332, presented by Luxottica, in the optical category.

Tied in the sunglass category were State Optical Co.'s Reunion, a collaboration by State Optical and Maxwell, and the Prada 16WS, presented by Luxottica. Recognized with the JOOR Tech and Innovation Award was The No. 2 Eyewear, and The Ocean CleanUp, presented by Safilo, was the winner in the sustainability category.

Design Excellence Award winners are representative of consumer tastes and trends that inform purchase power. Winning products were voted on by the public from finalist pools selected by the Accessories Council Board of Directors. Finalists were chosen based on the criteria of excellence in design, unique appearance and/or function, consumer needs addressed by product, appropriate aesthetics, innovative materials or technology, market positioning and competitive performance, social images, emotional appeal, and sustainability, the Council stated. Story continues below.
 
 
 The No. 2 Eyewear
 
 The Ocean Cleanup—Presented by Safilo
The Accessories Council's Hall of Fame Award, which recognizes one single iconic product or brand that has stood the test of time as determined by the Accessories Council Board, was awarded to Coach recognizing The Rogue Bag on the occasion of the 80th Anniversary of this iconic American brand.
 
The NPD “Recovery Driver” Award recognizes the top dollar volume item in the category that has seen the strongest recovery vs. 2020, in NPD’s tracked retail universe. This year’s winner was the Samsonite 28” Freeform Spinner Suitcase.
 
Romeo Hunte luggage was the recipient of the Blackglama Exclusively by Saga Furs Award.
 
The JOOR Technology and Innovation Design Excellence Award celebrates cutting edge products in the accessories, jewelry or footwear categories that use innovative design, technology or materials.

Design Excellence Award winning products are available for purchase in the U.S. via retail stores, e-commerce, TV retail, or direct marketing between Oct. 1, 2021 and Dec. 31, 2021. The Accessories Council provides category finalists and winners with promotional tools for use at the wholesale and retail levels to market their products to consumers.
 
Sponsors of the 2021 Design Excellence Awards include Blackglama Exclusively by Saga Furs, JOOR (Tech & Innovation Award), Qurate Retail Group and Marchon Eyewear.  Each of the winners listed above received a trophy designed by Marchon Eyewear. For more information on categories and finalists, click here.
 
VMAIL reported on the finalists for the 3rd annual Design Excellence Awards in August.

After carefully reviewing hundreds of entries and receiving over 7,500 votes that were submitted on the JOOR website, the Accessories Council is pleased to announce the category winners of the third annual Design Excellence Awards as follows, including the first ever tie in the Sunglasses category: