“Those aren’t just things that SanMar says, they’re actually things that come through in everything we do,” says Shelley Williams, who joined the company in 2019. As VP of marketing, she says her job “isn’t trying to make up what the brand stands for, it’s really about trying to just articulate what the company already does organically.” Fashionably Early Although it is privately held and keeps its books closed, SanMar is widely known as the largest company in the promo industry. PPAI Research estimates it brought in $3.7 billion in sales last year and has grown its annual revenue by 51% in just the last three years. Of the 50 suppliers in the inaugural PPAI 100, SanMar earns high marks – scores among the best of the best, in other words – for revenue and growth, but also for its online presence, responsibility and innovation. The technology prowess is one example of how SanMar’s cultural values spur its success, making it an early adopter and on the cutting edge of practices that eventually become standard throughout the industry. SanMar was one of the first suppliers to track inventory with computers. “My dad always says if you don’t know the truth, you can’t tell the truth,” Lott says. “Somebody calls you and wants to order 500 yellow T-shirts. If you don’t know that you have them in stock, it’s hard to say yes. “Fast forward 50 years, technology is a key piece underpinning everything we do. We have hundreds of millions of units in stock, and we need to keep track across all of these [fulfillment] sites, advanced material handling systems and robotics. We’ve shifted almost all of our systems to be in the cloud, and we think a lot about cybersecurity and all of those things today. For us to be able to manage the business at its size and complexity, it’s what we have to do.” SanMar has likewise been on the forefront of the promo industry’s sustainability revolution and other forms of corporate social responsibility at home and throughout its supply chain. Chief Product Officer Pat Noonan rattles off the company’s involvement in CSR initiatives as if they were his children’s names. There’s the Science Based Targets initiative, the Must Read | Suppliers Rank Score Company 2022 Revenue (Millions) Change Since 2019 21 190.52 Peerless Umbrella $36.0 50% 22 Gold Bond $50.0 -9% 23 Bag Makers $61.1 7% 24 Innovation Line $95.3* 54% 25 Outdoor Cap $65.1 14% 26 Tekweld $48.2 23% 27 OTTO International $52.0 70% 28 BEL Promo $46.0* 12% 29 Terry Town $31.5 32% 30 Garyline $64.7 20% Score equals the total number out of a possible 500. * Estimate. 2019 revenue calculated based on figures reported to PPAI and others. All 2022 revenue figures have been certified by a company representative unless denoted. Revenue Growth Industry Faith Professional Development Responsibility Innovation Employees Happiness Online Presence Suppliers Earned HIGH MARKS in The Following Categories 44 • JULY 2023 • PPAI
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