News From Around the Industry

Staff Writer

SanMar Debuts the 2008 District Threads Collection Catalog
Seattle-based SanMar Corporation, a leading supplier of imprintable apparel and accessories, is releasing its 2008 District Threads catalog. The 36-page catalog showcases the entire District Threads line of essential fashion apparel, while offering a preview of forthcoming fall styles.
“The District Threads brand finds its appeal with teens and young adults who are looking for clothes that reflect their comfortable, relaxed approach to life,” explains Jeremy Lott, SanMar vice president of sales and marketing. “It’s all about a smart balance between fashion and function-like our District Threads organic styles, which combine environmental responsibility with casual

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The Aftershock

Staff Writer

Though it seems more than a little callous to worry about how the earthquake in China’s Sichuan province will affect our marketplace, in an industry that heavily depends on Chinese manufacturing, it would be sheer folly not to.
However, various reporting outlets are stating that the disaster’s effect on the Chinese economy will be minimal, which hopefully by extension, means U.S. manufacturing will receive nary a jolt. Here are a few soundbites from various news sources that you might be interested in:
BusinessWeek: ”China Quake Won’t Shake Economy”
However, many economists expect the impact on the Chinese economy of the power outages, communications

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Cartoon Spoofs American Apparel’s Dov Charney

Do you like T-shirts? V-neck T-shirts? And pornographic imagery? Me too! So starts a nice little animated parody video of Dov Charney, president and CEO of Los Angeles-based American Apparel, a company famous for both its meteoric success as well as its questionable advertising formula—one which regularly includes young women seductively (un)dressed and/or posed in American Apparel clothing. While the advertising campaign has made the company a target of lawsuits and social groups, it is perhaps now up against most dangerous, albeit entertaining foe—the Internet video satirist. The video’s director Josh Faure-Brac, (a.k.a. Super-Josh) creator of Current.com’s Super News show definitely found an effective

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White Named Director of Marketing for HandStands

HandStands, based in Bluffdale, Utah, announced Patrick White was hired as the company’s new director of marketing. White brings more than 15 years of experience in the promotional products industry. His most recent tenure was at Doug Fregolle Promotions where he enjoyed 11 straight months of double-digit increases. Patrick has developed comprehensive marketing programs for clients that include Nestle-Purina, Coca-Cola, MGM, Adobe, Skyy Vodka and Rock the Vote. For more information on HandStands, visit www.handstandspromo.com

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Ten Distributors Affiliate with iPROMOTEu in April

Wayland, Massachusetts-based iPROMOTEu announced 10 promotional products distributors affiliated with the company in April. Each of these new affiliates is a current industry sales professional and works either as an existing independent distributor or as a salesperson for a distributor company. The following individuals are among the industry distributors and salespeople who affiliated with iPROMOTEu in April: Kevin Caliup of Alliance for Minority Promotional Products Distributors in Montecito, Calif. Shannon Degrado of Go Fish Promotions in Scottsdale, Ariz. Erin Grogan of United Graphics and Mailing Group in Elk Grove Village, Ill. Erin Healy of Graceful Gifts in New York, N.Y. Andrew Turk

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Crystal D Employee Earns CRP Designation

St. Paul, Minnesota-based Crystal D, a supplier of crystal awards and corporate gifts, announced an employee earned the Certified Recognition Professional (CRP) designation at the 11th annual Recognition Professionals International (RPI) Conference in Newport Beach, Calif. Bridget Dahlgren, marketing coordinator for Crystal D, graduated from the CRP program that required her to complete four in-depth courses over the past two years and then pass a final examination on the coursework. The CRP designation certifies Dahlgren thoroughly understands the Recognition Best Practice Standards and can successfully structure recognition programs utilizing the formal RPI Recognition Strategy Model. “This designation allows me to better understand the recognition

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Proforma Horizon Total Source Receives Business Ethics Award

Troy Bevill, owner of Proforma Horizon Total Source based in Tyler, Texas, was awarded the Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics at the Better Business Bureau of Central East Texas Torch Award ceremony on April 29. The award was established to recognize regional businesses for demonstrating a commitment to integrity and ethical business practices. Proforma Horizon Total Source was honored in the one to nine employee category. “Proforma Horizon Total Source is thrilled to accept this prestigious award,” stated Bevill. “To be recognized by our local business peers affirms our commitment to maintaining ethical business practices. Ultimately, our honesty and fairness translate into an excellent

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