As expected, demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) has risen following reinstated mask mandates and recommendations throughout the United States due to the delta variant driving a surge in COVID-19 cases.

For the first time since April, “face masks” have returned to the top 10 list of most-searched items in ESP, ASI’s database of products from around the promo industry.

In August, “pens” was the most-searched term in ESP for the ninth consecutive month. However, “face masks” cracked the top three and “masks” ranked 10^th. From July to August, searches for “disposable face mask,” “face masks” and “mask” skyrocketed 562%, 414% and 309%, respectively. Even “hand sanitizer” saw a jump in searches by 75%.

“Mask mandates as schools are reopening have led to a resurgence in face coverings with over a 400% gain realized in August from July,” says Nate Kucsma, ASI’s executive director of research and corporate marketing. “While I thought that something like this was certainly a possibility, seeing the numbers in such stark reality is really shocking.”

Despite PPE making a comeback, there’s still interest in traditional promo products, especially for those going back to the office with searches for “business card holder” up 179%. Ahead of football season, searches for “rally towel” increased 82%. Understandably, summer items are no longer in vogue, with searches for “beach towel,” “beach ball” and “sunscreen” down 46%, 45% and 40%, respectively.