An item from Shakira’s “El Dorado World Tour” merchandise is receiving some heat for what critics say is a striking resemblance to the Black Sun image used by Nazi Germany and modern far-right extremist groups. As a result, concert producer Live Nation has stopped the sale of the necklace two weeks into the tour (coincidentally,…
Read MoreSix of the Highest-Earning Promotional Products Distributors Share Their Secrets
In 2017, our Top 50 promotional products distributors totaled $5.033 billion in sales. How did these powerhouse distributors get there? We asked six of the top earners and fastest growers from this year’s Top 50 list for the secrets to their success…
Read MoreBurger King’s Partnership With Budweiser Is Super Weird, But It Gave Us an Awesome Promotional Product
Movie reboots and cover versions of songs, among other forms of art, serve as ubiquitous—although not always well-executed or even necessary—reminders that nostalgia is a powerful marketing tool. Particular concepts can latch onto consumers and never let go. Budweiser and Burger King are banking on that, pairing a beloved commercial from the latter and a…
Read MoreProforma Receives Three 2018 American Inhouse Design Awards
Proforma, Cleveland, announced that it is the recipient of three 2018 American Inhouse Design Awards from Graphic Design USA for the concepts and designs behind its marketing campaigns. Recognition includes two Inhouse Design Awards and one Inhouse Web Design Award. “One of the challenges many distributors in our industry face is having the time and…
Read MoreHarsh Penalties, Shady Practices: Mumbai Becomes Largest City to Ban Plastic Bags
In what is possibly the largest and most severe plastic ban, Mumbai has issued a ban on single-use plastic bags, cups and bottles. While the size of Mumbai (population: 12.4 million) is enough to make this big news, it’s the way that officials are carrying out the ban that stands out the most…
Read MoreElon Musk, Farting Unicorns and Copyright Law: A Promo Story
As of Wednesday, the image was still being used in Tesla’s cars. Edwards reportedly intends to continue with his efforts to reach out to Musk, though no lawsuit has yet been filed. For him, it’s all about making sure that artists get paid for their work, especially in cases where corporations insist on using their designs without permission…
Read MoreGeiger’s Dale Denham Talks 2018 #Online18, Promo’s Top Influencers, Secrets to Social Media Success
Dale Denham’s 2018 #Online18, the annual list of the promotional products industry’s top social media influencers, launched last week. It’s one of our favorite stories of the year, so we invited Dale, who moonlights as Geiger’s chief information officer when he’s not blogging for Promo Marketing, to give us a behind the scenes look at…
Read MoreBobblehead for Phillips’-Brand Laxatives Leads to Lawsuit for Bayer
The lawsuit, which was filed by lawyer Steven Mintz in Manhattan Supreme Court, seeks $500,000 from Bayer for the reason that, according to the filing, the company “unilaterally continued to use the commercials on its website without plaintiff’s consent or permission through April 20, 2018…”
Read MoreVernon Company Appoints Elscott as Director of Corporate Programs
The Vernon Company, Newton, Iowa, announced that effective July 1, Sharla Elscott has been appointed to the position of director of corporate programs. In this newly created position, Elscott will continue to be an integral part of the sales and marketing team, where she will be responsible for helping…
Read MoreAmazon Is Expanding Its On-Demand Merchandise Service
Amazon’s presence on the periphery of the promotional products industry has been known for a while, and it’s grouped in with the likes of CafePress, Redbubble and Custom Ink (among others) who are adopting the direct-to-consumer model of custom products sales. To say that Amazon is now a competitor is old news. However, the extent…
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