PPB December 2015

78 •

PPB

• DECEMBER 2015

CONNECT

PPB:

Are there any industry challenges

or issues that you’d like to see renewed

focus on?

David:

It’s just like they say, what got

you here won’t get you there. We used

to be able to take pride in the fact that

we were a hidden industry and it was

difficult for end buyers to find a source

for their promotional products. If we

continue to be hidden, other indus-

tries/companies will be able to tell con-

sumers where to go to get branded

merchandise and deliver their own

message. With the internet making

information and ordering extremely

accessible, we will be in a world of hurt

if we don’t deliver the message and

establish ourselves.

Another huge challenge ahead of us

is the new generation of buyers and

buying habits that are changing the way

we do business. I am that dreaded “M”

word—a Millennial. I grew up learning

how to multiply from Number Munchers

on seemingly the first computer, play-

ing Oregon Trail in the classroom, hav-

ing a pager in high school, and I was on

Facebook when it actually required a

college email address to participate.

Technology isn’t something I learned—

it is something I grew up with.

Technology is a challenge that we

haven’t embraced as quickly as we

should have, which has allowed outside

entities and disruptive business mod-

els—such as Amazon—to creep into our

space. I know that PPAI is already work-

ing on some initiatives to keep us pro-

pelling forward and I look forward to

contributing to those efforts.

Larry Cohen

Cohen was selected for the at-large

director seat from a field of distributors,

suppliers, multiline

reps, business servic-

es members, interna-

tional suppliers and

international distrib-

utors, and nominat-

ed by a committee

consisting of the

PPAI Board chair,

chair-elect and

immediate past chair. He has been

active in a number of promotional prod-

ucts industry organizations, including

PPAI—for which he is a past chair of the

Editorial Advisory Committee and the

North American Leadership Conference

—the PromoKitchen Advisory Board and

the PeerNet Marketing Committee.

PPB:

Why do you want to serve on the

PPAI Board?

Cohen:

There are times in life when

you reach a point where you realize

that much of your success has been

built on the support of others and that

it is important to give back. For me, I

feel like this is my time. One of my

mentors in the industry was Janelle

Nevins, who was a legend and one of

the most giving people I’ve ever met.

Janelle loved this industry and was so

involved. She always used to say to me

that I should get more involved in PPAI

and should think about running for the

board. I did not totally take her serious-

ly all those years ago but, as I’ve

matured, I have come to recognize all

the good things that PPAI does. I truly

want to contribute to the industry’s

growth and success. I feel honored to

be part of the board and am excited

that I can continue to build on the

efforts of people like Janelle.

PPB:

What unique strengths and experi-

ences do you bring to the PPAI board?

Cohen:

I am one of those people who is

both right-brained and left-brained. After

college, I attended an Ivy League law

school and worked as a lawyer for a cou-

ple of years. This training continues to

help me analyze situations from numer-

ous vantage points and clearly assess

strengths and weaknesses. I’m also a

great problem solver. On the other

hand, I am very creative and love com-

ing up with new and unique ideas to

help build our company and to help our

clients build their brands.

I recognized very early on that the

perception of our industry (trinkets and

trash, tchotchkes, etc.) was not com-

mensurate with the potential impact our

industry could have on corporate brand-

ing and marketing. One of the core con-

cepts we strongly emphasize to our

team members and our clients is the

need for a clear strategy before select-

ing a branded promotional item.

I also recognized that product safety

and compliance was going to be a huge

issue in our industry. As a result, we

formed an in-house compliance depart-

ment almost 10 years ago. I think this is

something that every supplier and dis-

tributor needs to come to address as

soon as possible. Axis has been very

involved at the board level in this matter.

PPB:

What would you like to accomplish

during your board term?

Cohen:

There are three key areas that I

would like to work on while on the board.

1. Perception – I still believe that our

industry has a long way to go to get

the respect that is due. All the

research indicates how effective pro-

motional products can be if used

properly and strategically.

Nevertheless, our products and servic-

es are often not perceived in the same

way as other marketing vehicles. I

know PPAI has been working hard on

this effort. I believe I can contribute

significantly in this area as Axis has

direct experience working with many

of the larger advertising agencies and

their clients. A corollary to this is the

need to get everyone who works in

our industry to understand the real

benefits and to modify how they dis-

cuss these benefits with their clients.

The long-term success of our compa-

nies and our industry is going to be

based upon our ability to get our

clients to view us as strategic partners

as opposed to product sellers.

2. Compliance – This is a critical area

that is still evolving. I applaud the

efforts of PPAI and hope to bring

some of our knowledge and experi-

ence as a distributor on the forefront

of this area to others in the industry.

3. Recruitment – This is an amazing

industry that has so much to offer. I

can’t think of many industries where

the potential list of prospects is unlim-

ited and the options of what you can