Towel Specialties (asi/91605) has appointed Scott Hareid of multi-line agency Hareid Marketing, Inc. to represent the company in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. He has more than 20 years of industry experience. “We are thrilled to have Scott join us,” said Towel Specialties President Shawn Kanak. “[He is] highly respected among his customers in his territory … we’re sure [he] will contribute to our continued growth.”

SIMBA (asi/87296) has hired Daniel Moore as national sales manager. He joins the company with what executives described as extensive sales management experience in promo. “I am excited to be a part of this team that is poised for explosive growth,” said Moore. “Simbaline has a rich history of industry-leading service and is technologically advanced and able to offer cutting edge decoration.”

Proforma (asi/300094), a Top 40 distributor, is preparing to launch ProSuccess, an automated sales insights tool with a sales dashboard aimed at improving productivity. “Data analytics are critical to better understanding client behavior and trends,” said Greg Armstrong, vice president of sales. “This next-level insights tool allows Proforma owners to track their team’s account growth in real time. The predictive nature of the tool will significantly mitigate sales attrition while supporting retention strategies.” Attendees of Proforma’s upcoming Million Dollar Club event will get an exclusive look at the sales dashboard and an in-depth demonstration of its features.

Storm Creek (asi/89879) has added new employees to its customer experience, fulfillment and IT teams. Nicole Hagerty comes aboard as order management and data specialist. Benno Klotz joins as warehouse manager. Morgan Wendt is now in warehouse specialist role, and Susan Haider has been hired as an IT and Data Specialist.

All Star Incentive Marketing (asi/117110) has named Laura Smith at Evergreen Embroidery its 2021 sales rep of the year.

ColDesi Inc. (asi/18325) has acquired Mesa Supplies, a Fort Worth, TX-based apparel decorating supplier. Financial terms were not disclosed. Decades ago, the two equipment suppliers divided the country by selling embroidery machines as SWF West and SWF East. The companies later renamed and expanded their offerings to include a wider variety of decorating equipment. “Joining forces with Mesa is a natural progression for ColDesi,” said Scott Colman, president at ColDesi. “That shared early experience gives us a great foundation to move forward together.” The company also stressed that Mesa personnel would remain on staff to service customers. ColDesi has been on a path of expansion the last few years, acquiring Pantograms in 2017, Belquette in 2018 and BestBlanks.com in 2020.

Geiger (asi/202900), a Top 40 distributor, recently promoted Samantha Stewart to the role of key account manager in corporate programs. Stewart will serve as the primary contact person for her assigned programs and be responsible and accountable for their overall performance.

PromoKitchen hosted a webinar on current consumer trends featuring Vicki Ostrom, futurist and trend analyst at Top 40 supplier SanMar (asi/84863), on Feb. 17. Ostrom discussed how a two-year pandemic is informing a number of consumer trends, including galaxy patterns, soft shapes for “cocooning” and nostalgia during rapid societal change, as well as leading to renewed questioning of the nature of “tradition” and “reality.” “We’re looking at trends through the lens of where we’ve been,” said Ostrom during the webinar. “People want to try to regain control and that’s coming out in product design.”

Sky High Marketing (asi/328476) is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. The full-service distributor with offices in Waukesha, WI, and Las Vegas, NV, was founded in 1997 by Josh Kozinski as “Super Shirts.” In 2007, the company was rebranded as Sky High Marketing after adding its Las Vegas branch.

Commonsku, business and sales software for the promotional products industry, is presenting a webinar, “The Future World of Branded Merch,” Wednesday, Feb. 16, at 2 p.m. EST. Bobby Lehew, chief content officer of commonsku, will share how branded merch is now more popular than ever, exploring how big brands like Hulu and Chipotle are changing the way the world values merch. Register here.

Delegate CX (asi/178336) has named Becki Heinen director of customer success. Based in Dallas, Delegate CX specializes in helping promotional product companies with outsourcing key business tasks. Heinen was most recently with industry partnering group/software-as-a-service company Facilisgroup, where she held business development roles. “We are super excited to have Becki join the team at such a pivotal time for the company,” said Craig Dunlap, CEO/founder of Delegate CX. “We are starting to see the promotional products industry really take off again after the pandemic, so we’re eager to help drive new growth for our clients and partners. Becki will be a crucial part of that, and we couldn’t be happier to have her heading up our essential customer success department.” 

Proforma (asi/300094), a Top 40 distributor, recently donated to a mission trip to Africa led by Threads of Hope, a nonprofit dedicated to ending the cycle of poverty in developing countries. Threads of Hope runs an 18-month program that provides women with sewing machines and the education to open their own businesses. Proforma’s donation included sewing machines for the program. “Here at Proforma, we continually strive to create new opportunities for women,” said Proforma CEO Vera Muzzillo. “We recognize the unique strengths and challenges that women around the world face, and it is our mission to support meaningful programs like Threads of Hope.”

Superior Group of Companies, parent firm of Top 40 distributor BAMKO (asi/131431), was named to Forbes’ ranking of “America’s Best Small Companies” for the second consecutive year. Forbes recognizes the top 100 small cap companies based on earnings growth, sales growth, return on equity and total stock return for the latest 12 months available and over the last five years.

Storm Creek (asi/89879) has added two positions to its growing staff. Nikki Benson has been hired as vice president of operations, a new position which oversees the customer service, order entry and fulfillment, and warehouse departments at Storm Creek. Heather Champion is now production and sourcing assistant, a role that supports sourcing, production and design functions at Storm Creek.

Reciprocity Road, an alliance of 10 distributors across the U.S and Canada, accounting for approximately $230 million in promotional products spending, has added Denik (asi/49264) and Newell Custom Writing Instruments (asi/84833) as new preferred supplier partners for 2022. “With the addition of these two premier vendors, our Reciprocity Road sales teams have expanded offerings of exceptional preferred vendor partners and their products,” said Perry Wehrle, executive director of Reciprocity Road.

Gemline (asi/56070), a Top 40 supplier, will host a free, live webinar on Thursday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. ET:  Global Supply Chains – How We Got Here and What’s Next. This one-hour discussion will provide an understanding of how the current supply chain crisis unfolded and what can be done to better prepare for potential future disruptions. Register here.

The Premier Group Network, a supplier-distributor networking group, will renew the PPEF Named Scholarship in honor of Paul E. Smith, president of Ardmore, PA-based supplier Calconix Inc. (asi/43270). The scholarship was created to honor Smith, one of the group’s founders, during PGN’s 20th anniversary celebration in 2017. The renewal will continue the scholarship through 2025. PPEF offers higher-education scholarships to promotional products industry employees and their children. In 2021, $278,750 was awarded to 161 students.

The Chesapeake Promotional Products Association (CPPA), New England Promotional Products Association (NEPPA), Philadelphia Area Promotional Products Association (PAPPA) and Specialty Advertising Association of Greater New York (SAAGNY) announce that they recently concluded the first series of Power of District “1” Shows, held Jan. 24 to 27, that welcomed more than 500 distributor attendees. Each day featured a trade show hosted by one of the four associations in their respective regions with educational sessions by industry veteran and speaker Cliff Quicksell. NEPPA also held food and essential items drive in conjunction with the show.

The Specialty Advertising Association of Greater New York (SAAGNY) invites students to apply for its 2022 College Scholarship, courtesy of The SAAGNY Foundation, the organization’s charitable arm. Eligible applicants include employees and owners of any SAAGNY member company, as well as their immediate family, who have been employed in the promo industry for at least two years. Applicants must be full-time undergraduates (12+ credits per semester) at any accredited community college, technical school, vocational school or four-year college or university. The application can be found here.

Raining Rose (asi/80489) has launched the new DIY Lip Balm Kit (Set-DIYLB) which contains sustainably sourced, easy-to-mix ingredients, along with two flavorings, five tins and imprintable tin and box labels. All components are also recyclable, and each kit comes with full mixing instructions for recipients. They’ll be available for shipment starting in early March.

PromoKitchen, an independent volunteer group in the promo industry, has elected two new board members for 2022. “Chefs” Bill Petrie, managing partner at brandivate, and Katie Kailik, national account manager at Peerless Umbrella Co. (asi/76730), are veterans of both the industry and PromoKitchen. The official announcement was made at the annual PK Mixer at the House of Blues in Las Vegas on Jan. 10^th. “I’m eager to use my diverse perspective and communications background to help drive awareness of PromoKitchen’s role in building a more dynamic, misfit-friendly industry,” said Kailik.

The Pro Towels Family of Companies, including Pro Towels (asi/79750) and Superior Decorating, has launched the Palmetto Blanket Company as a provider of American South-inspired blankets and throws. For every 20 Palmetto Blanket Company blankets sold, one blanket will be donated to a charitable organization in South Carolina.

Zing Manufacturing (asi/99025), the exclusive supplier of S’well products to the promo industry, now offers three new items from the retail drinkware brand: the 64 oz. Salad Bowl Kit with dressing container and dry goods metal tin; 1 pint Ice Cream Chiller that keeps ice cream cold for up to six hours; and Dog Bowls in 16 oz. and 32 oz. sizes that feature a non-slip bottom.

The Pro Towels Family of Companies, including Pro Towels (asi/79750) and Superior Decorating, has launched the Palmetto Blanket Company as a provider of American South-inspired blankets and throws. For every 20 Palmetto Blanket Company blankets sold, one blanket will be donated to a charitable organization in South Carolina.

Ultra Penworks Powered by GMG (asi/55583) is the new name of the supplier formerly known as GMG Pen. The rebranding also brings a new logo, new website and new line of performance pens that feature a large imprint area and a full-color digital decoration method.

Storm Creek (asi/89879) has released its limited edition #HealthCareStrong collection of Pacesetter quarter-zips and Sidekick crewnecks. When customers order a quarter-zip or crewneck at full price, they’ll have the option of ordering a second one for a healthcare worker. Storm Creek will ship the garment with personalized note to the recipient for free. More information can be found here.