At the recent 2020 Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards, the prestigious e-commerce Direct Selling company QNET was awarded the Bronze prize for 'Innovation in Sponsorships'. The win was in recognition of QNET's successful partnership with the Manchester City Football Club. 

Since its inception in 1998, QNET has grown into a multi-national company well known for its successes. While the main headquarters are located in Hong Kong, the company is present in over 25 countries. They are one of Asia's leading direct-selling companies. Through combing e-commerce and wellness lifestyle products, QNET has empowered entrepreneurs in over 100 countries across the globe. The corporation is owned by the QI group, who are no strangers to accolades either. The acclaimed parent company has won HR Asia's 'Best Company to Work for in Asia' award multiple times. QNET's Stevie® Award win may not be surprising assuming such high standards, but it is very well deserved by the sales powerhouse. 

The Asia-Pacific division is just one of eight programs within the world's premier business Stevie® Awards. It is the only division that considers nominations from all 29 nations of the Asia-Pacific region. This past cycle over 1,000 companies were nominated for their innovative practices. The nominees were separated into various sub-categories, such as 'Innovative Management' and 'Innovation in Products & Services'. Over two months, a panel of 100+ business executive judges determined the winners. Gold, Silver, and Bronze places were based on the averages of total scores. 

QNET CEO Ms. Malou Caluza said regarding the win, "For us, this award represents a recognition of the hard work put in by both teams to stay on top of their games. QNET is very proud of our ongoing relationship with Manchester City Football Club. Our aim through this sponsorship is not just to take our brand global, but to also make an impact in the communities where we do business. And this sponsorship has allowed us to do just that." said Caluza.

QNET has proudly been the Official Direct Selling Partner of the Manchester City Football Club since 2014. Together the two entities have made incredible impacts on the youth football community by investing their time and resources into educational, skill-building opportunities. They recently gave 20 young football fans from countries around the world a once in a lifetime experience. The kids were sent to a two-week camp at the City Football Language School. The school program is located on Manchester City's Etihad campus in the United Kingdom. The campers attended workshops to improve their skills as footballers and lessons in English language fluency. The kids were also able to enjoy behind the scenes tours of the Etihad campus, which is one of the best football facilities in the world. 

Just last year in 2019, the sponsorship contract was renewed for another 5 years. Caluza spoke of the deal, "This is a valued partnership for both QNET and Manchester City because performance is core to both the brands." By the time the recent renewal comes to its end, the mutually successful relationship will have reached a solid 10 years.  

The Manchester City Football Club has also been on a winning streak lately. The team recently won the 2020 Carabao Cup. The match against Aston Villa was held on March 1st at Wembley Stadium in London. This is the second consecutive Carabao Cup win for Manchester, with a total of 4 wins in the last 6 years. To commemorate the renewal of their award-winning contract, QNET created a limited edition luxury watch. The 'QNETCity Champions' watch is made by Swiss master craftsmen. One of a series of watches available on Manchester City's online merchandise store, the unique piece sold out quickly- even with a price of $4,500.

QNET's involvement in sports sponsorships does not end with Manchester City. They have other Direct Selling partnerships that include the Confederation of African Football and Total CAF's Champions League, Confederation Cup, and Super Cups. They are also sponsors of the PJ City Football team, an emerging Super League team in Malaysia. 

Due to circumstances regarding the COVID-19 crisis, the annual awards ceremony will be held virtually this year. 

Stevie® Awards president Maggie Gallagher said,  "This year's winning nominations are a testament to the resiliency and innovation of organizations in the region, many of which continue to succeed despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Although we are disappointed that we cannot stage the in-person awards banquet we had planned for Hanoi, Vietnam this year, we look forward to celebrating many of this year's winners during our virtual awards ceremony on 22 September."

For details on the event, or information about other nominees visit https://asia.stevieawards.com.