Top 40 distributor HALO Branded Solutions (asi/356000) presented its 2018 Supplier of the Year Award and 2018 Supplier Representative of the Year Award at its annual Awards Gala in Las Vegas this week.

SanMar (asi/84863), the promo industry’s largest supplier by revenue, was named 2018 Supplier of the Year based on a vote by the HALO’s account executives and support staff. Over 70 preferred suppliers qualified for the vote based on exceptional service, aggressive pricing and creative sales promotion efforts.

“Our continued growth, as well as the growth of our preferred supplier program, is a result of the incredible support from key suppliers like SanMar,” Terry McGuire, senior vice president of marketing at HALO, said in a press release. With estimated 2017 North American promotional products revenue of $1.4 billion, SanMar ranks first on Counselor’s latest list of the largest suppliers in the industry.

Leigh Joseph, director of strategic accounts for Top 40 supplier alphabroder (asi/34063), was recognized as the 2018 Supplier Representative of the Year.

“Leigh’s work ethic and passion for problem-solving has helped increase our alphabroder purchases substantially the past several years and, more importantly, the overall satisfaction of our sales force with this key supplier partner,” McGuire said. With reported 2017 North American promotional product revenue of $1.37 billion, alphabroder ranked second on Counselor’s latest list of the largest suppliers in the industry.

“Our preferred supplier program is an industry success story,” said Marc Simon, CEO of HALO. “The profit enhancements and exclusive promotions our preferred suppliers provide are passed on to our sales people — this year we announced a new record for preferred supplier bonus payments to our sales team. In turn, these key suppliers are honored with nearly 70% of our purchases. We are pleased to recognize these key suppliers for their efforts on our behalf throughout the year.”

With reported 2017 North American promotional product revenue of $416.4 million, HALO ranks third on Counselor’s latest list of the largest distributors in the industry.