I had the pleasure of attending an open house and media dinner this past week in Chicago. By all accounts, it was a fantastic event which included spending time with some of the industry’s nicest folks, lots of laughs, a great Moroccan restaurant, a professional belly dancer (as well as some not-so-professional belly dancers, you know who you are) and even a tarot card reader.
I am quite the skeptic and when I sat down for my reading I thought to myself, “Hmm, I am sure this will be way off the mark.” In actuality she was pretty much on target, even if
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Today I decided to step back and attempt to see “the big picture.” It is not always an easy task, but over these last few weeks of economic crises and natural disasters, it would be self-indulgent and inhumane to not take pause. As the death tolls from the earthquake and cyclone in China and Myanmar, respectively, surpass a staggering 130,000, the suffering of the survivors in these two nations is unfathomable.
To put the numbers of this human loss into perspective, lives lost from September 11, 2001 and for Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana were less than 5,000, and still the devastating effects of
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I once saw this completely forgettable movie with Salma Hayek and Matthew Perry called “Fools Rush In.” (Don’t judge, I usually have better taste).
Strangely, the only thing I can recall is that, in describing Vegas, one of the characters says (and I paraphrase) that they might as well have built the city on the surface of the sun.
These days, the same can hold true of Philly. It. Is. Oppressive.
Like, kids are being sent home from school, roads are buckling and I can’t even walk around my apartment without breaking a sweat. Not okay.
Yesterday, to capitalize on a little free
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Irving, Texas-based Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) released the results of its annual study confirming distributor sales of promotional products in 2007 increased 3.5 percent to $19,440,837,547 for 2007—setting a new sales record for for the third consecutive year. Distributor sales for the same period in 2006 were $18.8 billion. The annual study was conducted exclusively for PPAI by Richard A. Nelson, Ph.D., at the Manship School of Mass Communication at Louisiana State University; Rick Ebel, principal of Glenrich Business Studies; and Michaela Mora, research consultant at Relevant Insights, LLC. Sales of promotional products have increased by more than $670 million in 2007. This
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Trevose, Pennsylvania-based BroderBros. announced its Alpha division has seen a steady increase in seasonal demand for new fabric technologies, most notably for apparel with Columbia Sportwear’s proprietary Omni-Shade sun protection technology that blocks harmful UV rays. Akin to the protection provided by sunscreen, Omni-Shade provides protection from UPF 15 to UPF 50. Columbia’s Omni-Shade blocks UV rays by using tightly woven fabrics and finishes, providing the best UPF ratings in the industry, ranging from UPF 15, which protects the wearer from 93.3 percent of the sun’s UV rays to UPF 50, which protects from 97.5 percent. This technology, combined with lightweight fabrics and
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Ennis Inc., based in Midlothian, Texas, announces its subsidiary company Admore is the first Ennis facility to receive the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Chain of Custody Certification for its Macomb, Mich. facility. The mission of the FSC is to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forests. The FSC gives the assurance that forest management does not put the forest’s natural heritage at risk and the management activities efforts are appropriate. The certification gives Admore the ability to place and print the FSC logo on projects, signifying the products’ production met strict FSC standards. Bill Tignanelli, general manager
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Indianapolis-based Norwood Promotional Products announced the launch of an updated Web site. Norwood has been working on revisions to the site to make navigation and searching for products more intuitive, convenient and user-friendly. In addition, the Web site has been redesigned with a cleaner look and feel as well as improved speed and structure. Some of the updates include: • Products arranged by category and Norwood brand • Unique product and category URLs for easy reference • An updated search engine with advanced sort criteria • Expanded search functions including multiple product searches Improved speed and easier navigation •
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Clearwater, Florida-based BIC Graphic USA (BGU) announced the company has no plans to institute a midyear price increase, even with increased fuel costs driving manufacturing costs up in all industries. BGU believes in helping distributors maintain good customer relations and business strategies. According to Jack Teague, president BIC Group Graphic, “As 2008 reaches its midpoint, the promotional products industry is dealing with a very competitive and inflationary marketplace. BIC Graphic USA recognizes and respects the relationship our distributors have with their customers, and the annual pricing commitments distributors have made as part of their business plan.” The current pricing will be held in
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Provo, Utah-based Seastone, a leading provider of specialty gift card packages and promotional programs, announced the availability of the Walt Disney Collection gift card packages featuring characters such as Mickey Mouse, Hannah Montana, Disney Pixar’s Cars and Disney Princess. The new line is aimed at the teen market, as teens have embraced gift cards faster than any other segment. According to the Teen Gift Card Survey, commissioned by Comdata in 2007, teens reported 46 percent of the presents given were gift cards—a 12 percent increase from 2006. “Combining Seastone’s best-of-class gift card packaging with world famous Disney characters is going to revolutionize gift card
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Leading promotional product supplier Logomark Inc., based in Tustin, Calif. named Gardnar O’Brien as its new chief financial officer. Gardnar, as a key member of Logomark’s executive team, will work closely with company founders Trevor Gnesin and Neal Harper on overall corporate strategic planning. Gardnar is an accomplished CFO, having served in senior management, finance, accounting and operations roles in the promotional products, private equity, direct mail and retail industries for international, Fortune 500 and privately held companies. Most recently he was interim CFO for a $65 million importer of gift products from China. In his previous role as CFO for Sweda from 1998-2005,
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