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(MVP Promotions), I was devastated.” But Valentini encouraged
Johnson Cornell to start her own multi-line rep firm as well, which
she did in 1985, establishing Dale B. Johnson Associates. “Mike is still
a mentor,” she says.
In addition to Valentini, two other people stand out as being
instrumental to her success in the promotional products industry.
Maralyn Brink [of distributor Brink Associates] “took me under her
wing. I learned so much from her. She was a brilliant, creative distrib-
utor and she led me to get involved in our regional association—[then
called] the Specialty Advertising Association of New England
(SAANE),” Johnson Cornell says.
Jim Moore of Bay State Specialty was also instrumental. “He was
the president of the SAANE and here I was, the little kid with curios-
ity going, ‘can I help?’” That curiosity led Johnson Cornell to become
president of SAANE herself, about the time she became an independ-
ent rep.
Teamwork
Thirty years ago, the Northeast Representatives Association
(NERA) decided to host its own trade shows, the first multi-line rep-
resentative group in the U.S. to do so. “We would pick a hotel, send
out invitations using a list from PPAI and invite distributors to come
see us and talk about new products. And we still do this today,”
Johnson Cornell says.
NERA partnered with regional associations including the Specialty
Advertising Association of Greater New York (SAAGNY), the
Philadelphia Area Promotional Products Association (PAPPA) and the
Chesapeake Promotional Products Association (CPPA) to do a com-
bined show three years ago after realizing there were just too many trade
shows. “It’s four days of shows in four states the last week of January
with one big truck and one big bus. Our participating suppliers enjoy
the comfort of the bus and the hauling of their displays while travelling
from state to state. I’m really proud of NERA because we have hung in
there through many industry changes. It’s just been fantastic.”
The shows allow the multi-line reps to develop and strengthen
personal relationships—as well as helping distributors gather the
information and creative ideas to be able to continue a one-on-one
relationship with their clients.
Then And Now
Some things
haven’t changed.
“You still have to
care, work hard, be
organized and want
to see success for
your distributors and
suppliers. And I
always encourage
people to get
involved with their
regional associa-
tions,” she says.
But a lot has
changed. Staying in
hotels is a breeze
today compared to
what it was back in
the early 1980s. For
example, “There
were hangers for
guys’ pants but no
skirt hangers,” she
says with a chuckle.
Then again, traffic
wasn’t as bad and
there were fewer
distributors to visit.
“It’s so much harder
today,” she says. “It’s becoming oversaturated.” Hiring an associate
(Cheryl Lickteig) has helped tremendously, says Johnson Cornell.
And PPAI’s educational opportunities have helped her stay up to
date with the many industry changes. She will begin serving on the
PPAI Awards & Recognition Committee starting in January 2016.
The most dramatic change, however, is one that she herself helped
create: now there are many female multi-line reps.
OCTOBER 2015 •
PPB
• 11
12
Commuting
In Comfort
EYE ON APPAREL
19
What’s Your
Preference?
QUESTION
26
Best Bosses
Of 2015
FEATURE STORY
On the 18th green at Wolf Creek in Mesquite,
Nevada just before The PPAI Expo 2014.
23
What’s In
Your
Name?
MARKETING