is as big a part of the story as the legacy he will be leaving behind. ‘Running On Fumes’ In an industry where the right relationships can sustain entire careers, Kiewiet formed his fair share since founding Promotion Concepts in 1983. Big clients were his bread and butter, and the Kellogg’s account – a white whale of a brand for many – was tied to him, so much so that when he sold the company nearly 25 years after founding it, Kellogg’s was willing to follow him wherever. In 2007, Kiewiet was chairman of the PPAI Board of Directors, and the vice president of a fast-growing start-up called CorpLogoWare. He had noticed a few red flags at his new employer and was already planning his departure, but he couldn’t have prepared for how his life was about to be upended, both professionally and personally. Around that time, Kiewiet’s then-wife of 32 years, left him unexpectedly. Within 18 months, a friend who had offered to bring him into his consulting business passed away. Then, the owner of CorpLogoWare, who Kiewiet says owed him six figures in pay, committed suicide. “My whole world went poof,” Kiewiet remembers. He had moved the Kellogg’s account to Mercury Promotions and was still able to drum up success, but he felt fractured inside. “I had just landed a $1.2 million project and that didn’t do anything for me,” Kiewiet says. “That’s what told me I was in the wrong place.” He sold the majority of what he owned, moved to Chicago with his dog and what fit in his car and tried to focus on writing and public speaking, two passions that brought in income but not at a sustainable level. Eventually he moved back to Michigan, settling in Grand Rapids. That’s when the MiPPA board reached out in 2010, reeling from the unexpected death of its executive director, to inquire about Kiewiet taking over. “I thought about how I really enjoyed being chairman of PPAI,” Kiewiet says. “I was doing all the things I love doing, and it was keeping me involved with the people I love doing it with.” “To take an association that was on the brink of extinction to what it is now – the top of the top regionals – that’s all due to Paul’s creativity and his ability to think outside the box and execute those ideas.” –Charles Duggan, MAS Paul Kiewiet | Must Read PPAI • DECEMBER 2024 • 55
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