BAMKO (asi/131431), a Top 40 promotional products distributor, has entered into a strategic partnership with Carder and Associates (asi/157377), a California-based company that specializes in branded merchandise and corporate gifts.

Per the partnership, there’ll be a merger of operations and BAMKO will provide Carder with a suite of supports, guidance and resources, but the Cardiff-by-the-Sea-headquartered company will remain autonomous under the ownership of founder Ana Rita Carder.

“We are still a minority- and women-owned business and you will get the same great service and payment terms you’ve always had,” Carder and Associates noted in a LinkedIn post. “But you now also get access to a suite of best-in-class services that will allow Carder to serve you in new and exciting ways.”

BAMKO Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships Josh White likened the distributor’s partnership model to a Silicon Valley incubator. The company looks to connect with firms it believes have a strong value proposition and that are uniquely poised for significant growth. It then works in collaboration to nurture and accelerate that success, leading to expanded opportunities and revenue gains for BAMKO, too.

“With this model, we can take smaller distributors and have them consistently outcompete larger distributor competitors,” said White.

White noted that part of Carder and Associates’ appeal is its customer contacts in Brazil, founder Ana Carder’s native country and a nation where BAMKO already has a strong business presence. 

BAMKO previously entered into a similar partnership with Texas-based Lapgevity (asi/249351). White said that connection has helped Lapgevity drive “incredible growth” over the last two years.

Future partnerships could be in the cards. “It makes sense for us when we spot an opportunity for exponential growth,” said White. “We’re very selective with who we choose to do this with.”

BAMKO’s reported North American promo product revenue of $193.9 million was good enough to rank the company 11^th on Counselor’s most recent list of the largest distributors in the industry.