93 / 112
Imagen Brands
, parent company
of Crown Products (UPIC:
CROWNPRO) and Vitronic (UPIC:
ACHIEVER)—
Rory Campbell
and
Bob Heintz
, promoted to nation-
al account managers;
Lara
Gryder, CAS
, and
Daniel
Pendleton
, promoted to strate-
gic account managers
The Magnet Group
(UPIC:
THEM8674)—
Jessica Hutwelker,
MAS
, regional sales manager for
Washington, Oregon and
Northern California
Polyconcept North America
—
Kortney Deming
, hard goods
field sales team
Pro Towels
(UPIC:
PROTOWEL)—
Chuck Lang
, chief
financial officer
IN MEMORIAM
Bill Schmidt, Sr.
, CEO of Largo,
Florida-based supplier
Hit
Promotional Products
, passed
away April 9 after an illness. He
was 73. Schmidt was one of the
most knowledgeable and influ-
ential figures in the promotional
products industry, and also one
of the most beloved by employ-
ees, customers and industry col-
leagues alike.
Schmidt became part of
the promotional products indus-
try when Cosco, his father’s
company, acquired Hit and Colt
& Dumont, then known as C&D
Hit. Schmidt saw an advantage
in importing goods and was
among the first to import pens
from Europe and buy products
from Taiwan and China. In 2001,
he purchased the company out-
right and changed the name to
Hit Promotional Products, even-
tually moving it from manufac-
turing to importing and decorat-
ing exclusively.
In July 2015, he orchestrated
the acquisition of supplier
Admints and Zagabor.
In a statement released by
Hit, the company remembered
him fondly: “Bill Schmidt, Sr. was
every ounce an industry icon.
The small things are what every-
one cherished most about him.
He walked all three of Hit’s fac-
tory floors every single day, and
genuinely cared about each and
every person at the company.
From the entry-level team mem-
ber, all the way up to CFO, he
was admired and respected
amongst all. He was not only a
boss to so many people, but
more of a father figure, friend
and mentor to countless people
across our company
and industry.
“There is not a
single person Bill
Schmidt did not touch
that he did not make
better. Our company
and family have lost a
legend and he will be
missed more than words can
express.”
Schmidt left his mark on
those who knew and worked with
him. Wayne Greenberg, MAS,
president of distributor JB of
Florida, Inc./Geiger, says, “Bill
had a huge heart. He was one of
the first people I talked to about
joining the Tomorrow Fund for
PPEF. I told him it was for the
kids and all he asked was ‘how
much.’ He was a great guy, and
I’m going to miss him.”
Chuck Fandos, CAS, CEO of
the Facilisgroup, says, “The pro-
motional products industry has
lost a giant in Bill Schmidt. Hit is
such a great success story in our
industry and Bill was the driving
force behind that success. He
built his business with his wife
Liz and two sons, Bill Jr. and CJ
the hard way. They used their
own money, worked harder than
the competition and had the
guts to go to China before
many others. Bill loved the
sourcing side of the business
and was damn good at it. He
passed that talent on to Bill Jr.
and CJ. Bill was loved by all of
the Hit employees and respect-
ed by all of his competitors. He
leaves a huge whole in the
industry but taught so many the
path to success, he will live on
and on.”
In 2014,
PPB
spoke with
Schmidt about his thought on the
promotional products
industry and his philos-
ophy on business. In
his seventies at the
time, he had no
thoughts of retirement.
“When you like what
you do, you don’t ever
want to retire,” he
said. “I love this business. I go
back to what my father and
grandfather always told me: suc-
cess is solving problems. That’s
what you have to do every day.
Sometimes coming to work I
think, ‘I’m not going to stop at
the factory today.’ Then I think,
‘You have to do this.’ I go there
and see something I wouldn’t
have seen if I hadn’t been there. I
enjoy what I’m doing.”
Schmidt is survived by his
wife Liz, and two sons Bill
Schmidt, Jr., Hit’s vice president
of operations, and CJ Schmidt,
its president.
Bill Schmidt, Sr.
PEOPLE
NEWS
JUNE 2016 •
PPB
• 91
Jim Miller
Patrick Odeneal
Daniel Pendleton
Chuck Lang
Jolie Porter
Matty Toomb