Premium Connection

New York-based Jones Apparel Group Inc. reported results for the first quarter ended April 3, 2010. Revenues for the first quarter of 2010 exceeded expectations and were $887 million, as compared with $891 million for the first quarter of 2009. Gross profit margin increased 390 basis points to 36.8 percent, reflecting continued careful inventory management.

St. Louis-based Ariel Premium Supply Inc., a supplier of stress relievers, pedometers, nonwoven bags and general promotional products, recently restructured its sales department to better serve its distributor customers and national accounts.

Soles4Souls Inc., Nashville, the international shoe charity that gives away new and gently worn shoes, announced it will begin providing new clothing to people in need through Clothes4Souls, a charitable division of Soles4Souls.

Stan Divine of Divine & Associates in Humble, Texas; Lynn Jumper of Jump Designs/Jump Promotions in Keller, Texas; Caryl Lazarus of Premium Success in New Rochelle, N.Y.; Bob and Crystal Burlow of Burlow Promotions Inc. in Greensboro, N.C.; Jon Fein of Dovetail Marketing in San Marcos, Calif.; Elaine and Allen Fogel of SOLUTIONS Marketing LLC in Scottsdale, Ariz.; and Eddie Moore of Awards & Sports Inc. in Travelers Rest, S.C. The identity of the other new affiliates is being kept confidential, temporarily, at their request.

SanMar Corporation, a leading supplier of imprintable apparel and accessories announced it will be the sole supplier of OGIO and gain exclusive distribution of all 54 OGIO products available in the promotional products industry.

Rank Company Promotional Total Employees Locations Principal(s) City, State Product Sales (000) Sales (000) 1. Corporate Express Promotional Marketing $235,000 $235,000 N/A 37 Dennis Multack, President St. Louis, MO 2. Proforma $227,500 $293,933 100 650 Greg & Vera Muzzillo, Co-CEOs Cleveland, OH 3. Bensussen Deutsch & Associates (BD&A) $200,000 $200,000 400 21 Jay Deutsch, CEO Woodinville, WA 4. American Identity $191,000 $191,000 830 3 Roger Henry, CEO Overland Park, KS 5. Geiger $172,530 $172,530 425 21 Gene Geiger, President/CEO Lewiston, ME 6. Adventures in Advertising (AIA) $135,000 $135,000 65 310 David Woods, President/CEO Neenah, WI 7. HALO/Lee Wayne $130,000 $130,000 140 1 Marc Simon, CEO Sterling, IL 8. 4imprint $111,585 $111,585 330 1 Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President Oshkosh, WI 9. American Solutions for Business (ASB) $78,059 $249,022 926 455 Larry Zavadil, President/CEO Glenwood, MN 10. Kaeser & Blair $78,000 $78,000 128 1 Kurt Kaeser, CEO Batavia, OH 11. Jack Nadel International $77,000 $77,000 240 24 Craig Nadel, CEO Culver City, CA 12. Summit Marketing $74,100 $111,731 400 8 Dan Renz, CEO St. Louis, MO 13. The Vernon Company $72,561 $72,561 650 4 Chris Vernon, COO Newton, IA 14. Evigna $69,000 $69,000 172 18 Shan Mehta, President Madison Heights, MI

It’s here, Promotional Marketing’s 2007 Top 50 Distributors of the year. Check out Promotional Marketing’s May issue for a complete run down of these top sellers. Rank 1. Corporate Express Promotional Marketing, St. Louis, MO Promotional $235,000 Total $235,000 Employees N/A Locations 37 Principal(s) Dennis Multack, President Rank 2. Proforma, Cleveland, OH Promotional $227,500 Total $293,933 Employees 100 Locations 650 Principal(s) Greg & Vera Muzzillo, Co-CEOs Rank 3. Bensussen Deutsch & Associates (BD&A), Woodinville, WA Promotional $200,000 Total $200,000 Employees 400 Locations 21 Principal(s) Jay Deutsch, CEO Rank 4. American Identity, Overland Park, KS Promotional $191,000 Total $191,000 Employees 830 Location 3 Principal(s) Roger Henry, CEO Rank 5.

What do Tiger Woods, Red House, PING and Nike Golf have in common? Not only do these big names appear on the green just about every week, they also appear in SanMar’s new 2007 Premium Collection catalog. The 94-page catalog features more than 109 products from the exclusive brands. “The Premium Collection is a resource for imprintable apparel distributors seeking upscale merchandise and brand name recognition,” said Lee Strom, senior marketing manager of the Seattle, Washington-based company. “This is the collection our industry has been waiting for. It responds to a new level of luxury that end-users are requesting.” This year’s catalog builds on

What do the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and Europe all have in common? Try combined global assets of approximately $32 billion in promotional product sales and a fierce commitment to raising the bar in the promotional products industry across the globe. It began approximately five years ago when, after having met informally for a number of years, six not-for-profit promotional products associations joined forces and formally established the International Federation of Promotional Products Associations (IFPPA). However, while IFPPA has been in existence for years, the organization has remained largely obscure. As the world’s residents continue to fuse at lightning speeds

May the road rise to meet you May the wind be always at your back And, may your Irish crystal recognition award be shipped directly from County Tyrone, Ireland. Not exactly how this Irish phrase goes, but it could very well be the dictum from Incentive Concepts, the Maryland Heights, Missouri-based supplier that knows the importance of adding value to distinguish its offerings from the slew of brand-name choices available in the ad-specialty industry. “Buyers are looking for the perfect product that will motivate, excite and create the desired response, yet buyers will do their homework and research to find the best value—not just price—for their customers,” said