July 10, 2019
Top 40 Distributors 2019
Counselor’s exclusive ranking of the distributors with the most revenue in the ad specialty market.
Spurred by a strong U.S. economy, distributor sales rose by 4.9% in 2018, hitting a record $24.7 billion. Top 40 distributors posted even more impressive gains, generating $6.9 billion in revenue, a year-over-year increase of 14.5%. Led by 4imprint (asi/197045), the five largest distributors in the market each recorded more than $400 million in 2018 promo sales. Fifteen Top 40 distributors reported double-digit annual growth. Of that group, seven produced revenue hikes of more than 20%.
Similar to last year, there’s minimal movement in the 2019 overall rankings. Twenty-six firms are either in the same position as 2018 or moved up or down just one spot. Corporate Imaging Concepts (asi/168962) is the highest riser, jumping 16 spots following its acquisition of eCompanyStore. At the other extreme, A Brand Company (asi/141964/145177) drops eight slots amid falling sales and the divesture of its Edmonton office.
Seattle-based Kotis Design (asi/244898) is the only new distributor on this year’s Top 40 list, joining the exclusive group after reporting 2018 sales of $45.6 million. Meanwhile, Sunrise Identity slides out of the rankings, as it was acquired by HALO Branded Solutions (asi/356000) last August.
Click on the links below to find facts and figures on each Top 40 company.
| Distributor | 2018 Sales | % Difference vs. 2017 | Rank Change | 5-Year Avg. Annual Growth Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. 4imprint | $714.6 | 17.5% | same | 17% |
| 2. Staples (eg) | $607.7 | 2.5% | same | 4.4% |
| 3. HALO Branded Solutions | $605.0 | 45.3% | same | 26.3% |
| 4. Cimpress (e) | $450.0 | 87.5% | 2 | N/A |
| 5. BDA | $427.0 | 23.2% | same | 9.5% |
| 6. Proforma | $378.8 | 2.7% | -2 | 1.2% |
| 7. Taylor Communications | $248.2 | 4.7% | same | 5% |
| 8. IMS | $221.8 | 5.9% | 1 | -2.1% |
| 9. DiscountMugs.com | $214.8 | 2.1% | -1 | 11% |
| 10. Geiger | $210.6 | 13.5% | same | 5.8% |
| 11. iPROMOTEu | $198.4 | 13.7% | 1 | 17.7% |
| 12. American Solutions for Business | $190.6 | 12% | 1 | 8.8% |
| 13. AIA Corporation | $189.8 | 8.2% | -2 | 7.4% |
| 14. Cintas (e) | $173.2 | 3% | same | 3% |
| 15. InnerWorkings (e) | $144.9 | -1.4% | same | 5.1% |
| 16. Safeguard/Deluxe (e) | $126.5 | 15% | 2 | 24.2% |
| 17. Jack Nadel International | $126.0 | 5.9% | -1 | 12% |
| 18. Kaeser & Blair | $121.9 | 6.5% | -1 | 5.2% |
| 19. Fully Promoted | $104.1 | 2.7% | same | 4% |
| 20. Boundless | $98.0 | 16.1% | 2 | 14% |
| 21. BAMKO | $86.5 | 8.3% | 4 | 30.6% |
| 22. G&G Outfitters | $84.2 | -5.7% | -1 | 6.8% |
| 23. Corporate Imaging Concepts | $83.0 | 88.6% | 16 | 34.5% |
| 24. Myron (e) | $82.6 | 0% | -1 | 2.4% |
| 25. The Vernon Company | $82.5 | 6.1% | 2 | 4.5% |
| 26. Positive Promotions (e) | $82.4 | 0% | -2 | 3.4% |
| 27. MTM Recognition (e) | $79.8 | 0% | -1 | 2.7% |
| 28. A Brand Company | $79.5 | -11.2% | -8 | 1% |
| 29. BrandVia Alliance | $69.0 | 25.5% | 2 | 17.7% |
| 30. Summit Group | $64.6 | -2.6% | -1 | -6.1% |
| 31. Overture Promotions | $60.6 | 27.6% | 6 | 21% |
| 32. ePromos Promotional Products | $60.0 | 13.2% | same | 14.1% |
| 33. Genumark | $57.7 | 9.9% | same | 12.2% |
| 34. Brown & Bigelow (e) | $57.0 | 0% | -4 | -1.6% |
| 35. Axis Promotions | $53.7 | 6.3% | -1 | 7% |
| 36. Artcraft Promotional Concepts | $53.5 | 7% | -1 | 1% |
| 37. Zorch | $48.9 | 1% | -1 | 7% |
| 38. PromoShop | $47.6 | 3.9% | same | 6.5% |
| 39. Kotis Design | $45.6 | 34.1% | NR | 23% |
| 40. Quality Logo Products | $44.1 | 3.5% | same | 14% |
Note: All revenues represent North American sales. Revenue figures are in $millions.
e: estimate
eg: estimate w/guidance