A Force For Good Danny Rosin, CAS, this year’s PPAI H. Ted Olson Humanitarian Award recipient, has always believed business should have a higher purpose beyond profit. By Rob Phillips DANNY ROSIN’S PASSION for marketing and philanthropy – and blending the two as a dynamic, meaningful service to others – began, of all places, in detention. “In middle school, I got in a lot of trouble,” he says. “I received so many demerits, there were not enough Saturdays to work them off. In order to expunge them, I started a community service club called The Happy Club. The mission was ridiculously broad – to make people happy. We created unique fundraising events that brought students together to help those in need. I now realize I was cause-marketing when I was 15.” More than 25 years later, an unlikely school project has evolved into a professional and personal calling. Rosin, president and co-owner of North Carolina-based distributor Brand Fuel, has built a career on marketing with a higher purpose. From a business perspective, Brand Fuel values strategic marketing, establishing lasting client connections and developing creative, sustainable solutions for them. It’s this passion, combined with countless contributions to the promotional products industry and the community, that made Rosin a perfect choice for this year’s PPAI H. Ted Olson Humanitarian Award. Named after the late PPAI president emeritus, the honor is presented to members who have shown longstanding empathy, devotion and commitment to improving quality of life and bringing about change for the betterment of a community. Rosin’s nominator, Social Good Promotions founder Roger Burnett, says Rosin’s work “has helped countless people and brands realize higher aspirations that will have positive and sustainable impact on both for profit and nonprofit organizations.” “He finds what matters and connect the dots with success through impact through the industry, the staff, the suppliers, the customers – the community,” Burnett says. ‘Entrepreneurial Instincts’ A self-described “marketing addict,” Rosin first dabbled in branded merchandise when he arrived at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill as an out-of-state student. His parents told him he would have to pay the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition. “I hated them for that at the time,” he says, “but it fueled my entrepreneurial instincts when I gambled $500 on some ‘Duke Sucks’ Must Read | Award Winners 68 • MARCH 2023 • PPAI
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