PPB August 2019

PPPC COMMUNIQUÉ by Jonathan Strauss T he Promotional Product Professionals of Canada’s (PPPC) National Convention is quickly approaching on September 10-12, and we are looking forward to the professional development sessions being offered on Education Day, September 10. Here are the dynamic sessions attendees will be treated to at the full-day event: State of the Industry Panel, Jonathan Strauss; Paul Bellantone, CAE, andDavid Natinsky, MAS: In this panel discussion, the leaders of PPPC, PPAI and SAGE will take questions fromPPPCmembers and share some of the insights they’ve gleaned from the important partnership they represent. Step into the Light, Jae M. Rang, MAS: Jae’s highly interactive roundtable session will break barriers and build friendships by spotlighting the genius that emerges when creativity and structure come together. The Power of Partnership: How a Company Store Keeps Clients Coming Back for More, Terri Sparkman: Attendees will learn how to incorporate SAGE company stores into their offerings, how to qualify a client and what exactly makes for a successful company store. True Partnership: Giving and Gaining Value FromEvery Customer Relationship, David Fellman: This session will help attendees develop a clear understanding of what buyers view as value, how customers can provide value to one’s business, and how to capture even more of that value than what they may be getting. 10 Things I Wish I Knew About Leadership, Nikki Pett: Nikki’s thought- provoking session will focus on developing and maximizing relationships one encounters daily among one’s team, suppliers and community—boosting positive communication and expectations in the process. Power of Partnering: Leveraging Relationships for Mutual Benefit, Cliff Quicksell Jr., MAS+: This seminar will help all attendees, regardless of their role in the industry, to maximize benefits, leverage community and be part of giving back to help raise the entire industry to unprecedented levels. All sessions being delivered at Natcon this year speak to our theme, The Power of Partnerships, which focuses on why developing and nurturing strategic relationships is so vital to our industry. In June we celebrated our one-year anniversary of the strategic partnership between PPPC, PPAI and SAGE. What better way to acknowledge the benefits of these partnerships and others within the industry than to build the focus of Natcon around them? This year at Natcon we will celebrate not only these partnerships, but the direct partnerships between suppliers and distributors and distributors and end users, as well as the direct and indirect partnerships at play between multiline agencies, suppliers, distributors and end users. Partnerships abound in our industry and are most successful when the parties involved seize opportunities to rise together and cooperate to achieve a common goal. We hope you’ll join us in September at Natcon for these engaging sessions that will challenge our thinking and push the promotional products industry forward, motivating us all in the pursuit of excellence. Jonathan Strauss is the president and CEO of the Promotional Product Professionals of Canada (PPPC). PPPC’s National Convention is the largest Canadian promotional products trade show and will take place September 10-12 in Toronto (Mississauga), Ontario, Canada. For more information or to register to attend, visit www.natcon.pppc.ca . Professional Development Sessions at PPPC’s Convention Focus OnThe Power of Partnerships Top: At Natcon 2018, many PPPC members participated in the professional development sessions. Right: Terie Vickers-Craig of BrandAlliance and her sister Danielle Vickers-Tjalsma presented an education session at Natcon 2018. | AUGUST 2019 | 75 CONNECT