PPAI Announces Updated 2020 Events and Meetings

Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), Irving, Texas, announced it has updated certain 2020 events and meetings to ensure the health, safety and well-being of its attendees, exhibitors, participants, staff and event and venue partners in the face of COVID-19 crisis.

“With careful consideration of restrictions of all gatherings and reports from leading health organizations, PPAI’s leadership team and board of directors have made the decision to reevaluate certain PPAI events and meetings scheduled for 2020,” said Paul Bellantone, CAE, president and CEO of PPAI. “The health and well-being of all parties involved is our No. 1 concern during this unprecedented time.”

The association sent the following statement to the industry:

For 118 years, PPAI events and meetings have served as the gathering place for the promotional products community to connect over shared experiences and we’ve always known that no matter what, we are in this together. The hardest part about this crisis is that, for us to be in this together, we must remain apart at this time. While, like you, we are saddened by the need reschedule or cancel some events and meetings, we know the strength of our industry, our connections and the power of promotional products will bring us together again—growing stronger than ever before.

PPAI will reschedule or cancel the following events and meetings to ensure promotional products industry members and stakeholders can focus on preventing and diminishing the spread of COVID-19. Updates to be posted here.

• Promotional Products Work! Week: Postponed—PPAI will postpone this week-long event, originally scheduled for May 4-8, to coincide with Advertising Week on October 5-8, where we already invest heavily in industry advocacy activities. The industry and association will use this as a rallying point to begin rebuilding and the early October dates can be both timely and fortuitous.
• PPAI’s Legislative Education and Action Day (L.E.A.D.): Cancelled—The annual visit to Washington, D.C., originally scheduled for May 6-7, in which our members represent and lobby on behalf of our great industry has been cancelled. However, PPAI intends to encourage all members to reach out to their members of Congress to thank them for their work on behalf of all of us and ask them to keep the needs of small businesses top of mind.
• SPARK Conference: Cancelled—While PPAI recognizes the importance of young professionals for the well-being and future success of the industry, it has made the difficult decision to cancel this program, originally scheduled for July 15-17. However, PPAI is considering making SPARK a one-day event in conjunction with the PPAI Expo in January 2021. PPAI will continue to find ways to serve this vital community.
• Other PPAI Events: Currently all other events are being evaluated. Rest assured, when the cancellation of any event is discussed, so, too, is the opportunity to offer programming in a virtual environment. Please know that all decisions will be made with the industry's best interests in mind.

For more COVID-19 information and supplier updates, PPAI has created an up-to-date web resource for promotional products industry stakeholders here.