Consumer’s People’s Choice Award now includes product manufacturers

In essence, the award shows that people think “Hey, this brand makes great products” and that our experts agree.

Previously, when we rated product manufacturers highly, they became worthy of Top Brand status. With the introduction of a product manufacturer category in People’s Choice, the Top Brand Award is being retired – but the expert advice available for consumers doesn’t change.

The People’s Choice Award for retail and service providers has been running for nine years. It is awarded to providers that give their customers a consistently exceptional experience and score high customer satisfaction rates.

We know from the sheer number of complaints we receive from our members that customer satisfaction is not as common as it should be.

Adding product manufacturers into the People’s Choice Award means that people can choose to buy from brands which make products that are the most satisfying to own.

People’s Choice Award – why you can trust it

The People's Choice Award recognises brands that stand out in people’s feedback and in our expert evaluations. The award applies to a class of products (fridges, washing machines etc) that the brand produces.

To qualify for the award, a brand must:

• receive high owner satisfaction ratings from a representative sample of New Zealanders

• make products that receive positive reviews from our expert testing team

• make products that are reliable and perform well over time.

The People's Choice Award provides a valuable seal of approval for shoppers. When a brand holds the award, you can be sure that testing results for its performance are statistically robust and significantly higher than the average for that category.

The businesses eligible for People’s Choice have no input in our testing programme or surveying.

People’s Choice Winners 2023

This year, 31 brands have been awarded People’s Choice, covering 28 product classes – from fridges to electric bikes.

Some brands including Stihl, Miele, Bosch and Mitsubishi Electric have won the People’s Choice Award across multiple product classes.

Because the People’s Choice Award celebrates the companies that place consumers at the core of their operations, it sets a standard, which those businesses become proud to meet.

For example, 100% Appliances (a retail outlet which stocks many of our People’s Choice products) has received the People’s Choice award for the eighth year in a row. It’s an excellent achievement, and a testament to the quality of its products and customer satisfaction.

Our latest Sentiment Tracker Survey found that, along with quality and value for money, ”trusted reviews” are an important purchasing consideration.

Our mission is to help New Zealanders navigate the consumer landscape with confidence. Our People’s Choice Award empowers people by arming them with the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions.