Top 40 distributor HALO Branded Solutions (asi/356000) announced its Supplier of the Year and Supplier Representative of the Year at the company’s Virtual Awards Gala on Jan. 28.

SanMar (asi/84863), the largest supplier by revenue in the industry, was recognized as HALO’s Supplier of the Year. “This past year we all learned the true meaning of partnership and there is no better example than our remarkable collaboration and friendship with HALO,” said Jeremy Lott, president of SanMar.

Dustin McCormick, key account manager at Chicago-based Toddy Gear (asi/91411), was named Supplier Representative of the Year. “Dustin was proactive in providing the HALO sales team with innovative ideas to build sales,” said Terry McGuire, senior vice president of vendor relations and communication. “His responsiveness, creativity and follow-through on every project created success for our team. He was a key driver for sales growth for both HALO and Toddy Gear.”

The gala featured company updates from HALO CEO Marc Simon, including word on company sales in 2020 and details on investments that the company made in technology and brand enhancement during the past year. “Our success in 2020 is a direct result of the spirit of partnership with our HALO Preferred Suppliers,” Simon said. “They worked tirelessly on behalf of our valued HALO account executives and clients amidst incredible adversity to help us succeed and position HALO for great things in 2021.”

HALO CEO Marc Simon

HALO also surveyed its staff and account executives prior to the event for nominations for its “2020 Zoom Awards.” The light-hearted awards covered categories that reflected the Zoom phenomena of 2020 as people worked from home.

While the gala is typically held in person, this year’s virtual format, held as a result of COVID-19, “allowed us to have hundreds of members of our support team attend to cheer on the accomplishments of our account executives – their account executives – which we otherwise couldn’t have done,” said Jim Stutz, executive vice president of sales and business development at HALO. “Our team did an amazing job in the most difficult business environment this industry, and this country, has ever seen. We are honored to recognize their accomplishments, their grit, and their ingenuity.”

With reported 2019 North American promotional product revenue of $787 million, HALO ranked second on the most recent list of the 40 largest distributors in the industry.