me to work more independently, so it’s been a smooth transition. I’m also enjoying the flexibility and ability to control my own time that freelancing offers. Since I’ve always thrived on being part of a team, I miss that daily interaction, but I am learning new industries and meeting new people through the projects I’m taking on, and that’s helping me feel a part of something much larger. I’m blessed that I can look back on so many incredible experiences at PPAI, working with people I adored, and feel very satisfied and fulfilled with what I accomplished there. You experienced and reported on a lot of massive changes in the industry during your tenure. How would you describe the evolution of promotional products over that time—down to the changes in what types of merchandise are popular as compared to before? The industry has certainly grown and matured in response to all the changes taking place in the world around it. When I came into this industry in June 1995, PPAI was just about to debut its first website, publications were exclusively in print and all events took place in person. Distributors were mailing or faxing handwritten orders to suppliers; the accepted turnaround time to fulfill those orders was several weeks—and no one batted an eye! Over the past two-and-a-half decades, there has been an incredible transformation in the industry, largely because of the adoption of technology, that has sped up and streamlined the entire ordering and manufacturing process. There has also been tremendous innovation in the types of products sold, how they are sold, who is selling them and how the products are used by the buyer. Our industry has done an impressive job of keeping up with what’s selling at retail and staying ahead of consumer demand with new product categories such as tech accessories, eco-friendly hard goods and apparel—including sustainable fabrics and earth-friendly materials—retail-inspired gear, ontrend colors and styles, and big-name branded products, especially in drinkware and coolers. It seems to have been more of a mom-and-pop line of work at the start of your PPAI career. So many of the organizations are very corporate now. How has that altered the landscape? This industry was founded on small, family-owned companies. But as business costs increased and customer demands grew, it made sense for companies to partner, sometimes with competitors, to add complementary strengths, minimize costs and maximize their deliverables. Over the past 10 years or so, there have been hundreds of acquisitions on both sides of the industry resulting in large companies getting larger as many small companies who joined their ranks let go of their own brands. This has spurred a lot of concern that the industry would consolidate down to a handful of very large megacompanies, and that’s still a concern, but it hasn’t “Through focusedmarketing, public relations and legislative outreach, PPAI significantly has improved the promo industry’s image in the larger business world and become the undisputed voice of the industry.” With Taylor Borst of ASB and PPAI's Anne Stone and Ellen Tucker With Geiger President and CEO Jo-an Lantz at WLC FEATURE | Exit Interview 48 | MAY 2022 |
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzU4OQ==