business and played an integral role in multiple corporate acquisitions. He added the CEO position to his title in the spring of 2021. “It’s a great honor to be elected to the PPAI Board,” Pantano says. “I am very excited to get started by listening to members to understand their needs and the challenges we face in this very dynamic environment. My goal is to help ensure that PPAI is focused on the most important issues so we can help the industry grow and prosper.” White has been with BAMKO since 2013, during which time the company has grown from around $20 million in annual sales to over $300 million. He is a former PPB Rising Stars honoree. Prior to entering the promotional products industry, White was an attorney in private practice. “I amhumbled and honored to be entrusted with responsibility of protecting and promoting the interests of the Association’s membership,” White says. “The moment is large, and the opportunity tomake important progress is substantial. I intend to give PPAI my absolute best, listening to our members intently and working tirelessly to do everything we can to help them thrive. I can’t wait to get started.” As head of strategy at BAMKO, he focuses on the long-term initiatives that contribute to BAMKO’s top line revenue growth, including key partnerships, sales and marketing strategy and execution, talent acquisitions and a number of other company focuses. “I think there is a unique opportunity now to actually make a big impact on the industry as a whole, on individual companies and on the human beings who work for those companies,” White says. Keister began her career in promotional products 12 years ago in distributor sales, working at City Apparel for over eight years as a corporate image and sales consultant. “My role allowed me to use my marketing background and love of all things brand to become a top-level salesperson within the company and eventually birth and grow Social Good Promotions,” Keister says. The new RRC Delegate brings a small-business perspective to the board. Social Good Promotions does not operate at the scale of the industry’s largest distributors, but as its name implies, the company puts a priority on direct community investment, financial contributions to the causes its employees believe in and increased supply chain transparency. The company’s ideal clients “are in search of greater meaning for the dollars they spend and nonprofits wanting to better communicate the value they present to their communities,” says its website. The three new PPAI Board members will join Chris Anderson of supplier HPG, Denise Taschereau of distributor Fairware, Melissa Ralston of supplier Koozie Group, Noah Lapine of distributor Lapine Associates, Andrew Spellman of supplier Therabody, Kevin Walsh, CAS, of supplier Showdown Displays and current Board Chair Dawn Olds, MAS+, of distributor HALO. Immediate Past Chair Todd Pottebaum, MAS+, president of distributor Quality Resource Group, will roll off the board in January, and Olds will move to the position of immediate past chair, with Walsh assuming the role of board chair and Spellman becoming the incoming chair. Taschereau will take the role of vice chair, finance services. “I amhumbled and honored to be entrusted with responsibility of protecting and promoting the interests of the Association’s membership,. The moment is large and the opportunity to make important progress is substantial. I intend to give PPAI my absolute best, listening to our members intently and working tirelessly to do everything we can to help them thrive. I can’t wait to get started.” —Joshua White | OCTOBER 2022 | 95 CONNECT
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