M2 Enterprises

PERHAPS ONLY NASCAR surpasses golf, the grand old game, as king of sponsorships. Cars seem to be held together more by decals than rivets. Blessedly, though, golf approaches sponsorships with a softer touch than racing. Dale Earnhardt (Junior, to most) may turn laps at Bristol Speedway in his Hendrick Motorsports National Guard/Amp Energy Chevy, but Tiger Woods doesn’t tee off from the 18th at Augusta with his Buick-sponsored Nike Driver brought to you by Gillette. When on a golf course or watching a tournament, one would be hard-pressed to find anything not branded, but the brand somehow always yields to the game. For distributors,

With the introduction of their new shrink-wrap service, Air Cannons Inc. announced that each T-shirt will be wrapped in plastic and ready to launch, providing a nice professional look when a person catches the shirt. The shrink-wrap also protects the T-shirts from dirt and scuffs in case it hits the ground. Previously, T-shirts were wrapped in tape or rubber bands to keep the t-shirt together while in flight. Personalized cannons built by Air Cannons Inc. have been featured in such shows as “American Chopper”, “Pimp My Ride” and in a commercial for ESPN. Air Cannons are used as a marketing tool at events to

THE FACT IS, people enjoy taking care of themselves. And with this innate self-preservation quality of humankind, it comes as no surprise it would bring rise to a bustling promotional product category that proclaims: “It’s just me, myself and I,” as was so eloquently put by ’80’s hip-hip pioneers, De La Soul. Distributors looking to freshen up their bottom lines (and their sales pitches) should consider personal-care items. Manufacturers of these products say there are few other promotional product categories that offer the same repeat-order consistency. A 2005 survey conducted by PPAI showed personal-care products accounting for 1.58 percent of total industry sales. Just one

“Jayme Weber has been appointed president of the promotional products division effective November 30th, 2007,” announced Harris Hester, CEO Forsyth Holdings, parent company of PremiumWear, Minnetonka, Minnesota. Jayme succeeds Tim Klouda who is leaving PremiumWear for another position in the industry. Weber joined PremiumWear in 2001 as national sales manager and was named vice president of sales, promotional products division in 2005. Further, Weber has more than 20 years experience in apparel sales management. Prior to his career at PremiumWear, Weber worked as an independent owner of a sales representative organization and as a sales representative. “We are excited about our growth in

Following the announcement of the acquisition of S. Walter Packaging by Brynwood Partners, Greenwich, Conn., Hicksville, New York-based Uniflex, also a Brynwood company, will merge with S. Walter. The merger will provide the advertising specialty and medical industries with a full range of products, capabilities, global sourcing solutions and distribution services, in addition to enhanced North American manufacturing capabilities. The combined company will be led by Andy Wilson, who will assume the roles of chairman and CEO. Vince Schaller will continue as president of Uniflex. “We are pleased to bring together these two great companies that are established leaders in their respective and

Facilis Group, St. Louis, Mo., recently announced a new business model designed specifically for distributors in the $1- to $5-million revenue range. The Internet-based business model consists of a front-end Web-site offering more than 2,000 products with a back-end contact management and order processing tool. “The tool revolutionizes the industry,” said Chuck Fandos, president of Facilis Group. “We believe a very important aspect of our industry today is speed to market. The tool allows distributor sales people to generate quotes within minutes. These quotes offer color images, detailed product descriptions and all the information the customer requires to make a decision.” Of equal interest