Awards October 26, 2026
Counselor Power 50 2026: No. 12 Lance Stier & David Miller, NC Custom
Welcome to the 2026 Counselor Power 50 list, which ranks the most influential people in the promo products industry.
#12 Lance Stier & David Miller
NC Custom (asi/44900)
Lance Stier – Managing Partner/CEO
2025 Rank: #11
Industry Experience: 16 years
Previous Appearances on Counselor Power 50: 8
David Miller – President
2025 Rank: #11
Industry Experience: 36 years
Previous Appearances on Counselor Power 50: 8
Lance Stier and David Miller, the duo who lead Counselor Top 40 supplier NC Custom (asi/44900), are going strong after their company recorded 4.5% year-over-year growth in 2025 and then followed it up with the January 2026 acquisition of Richmond, VA-based Confection 360 and the launch of its laser-etched chocolate offerings. Other significant areas of success include the growth of its web-based platforms business, supported by continued investment in its ERP system and data integration; new product rollouts in partnership with M&M’S and HERSHEY’S KISSES (a promo exclusive to NC Custom); expansion of its custom decorating apparel business, including launches featuring high-profile brands, specialty printing techniques, kitting and collections tied to America250; and continued growth of their lip balm and health/beauty businesses.
Stier and Miller note that there are challenges every year in business in all phases, but the question is how the challenges are handled. They explain they tackle each obstacle with professionalism, intellect and integrity and then execute with a strong complement of vendor, customer and team relationships.
Going forward, Stier and Miller will soon announce a significant acquisition which will expand NC Custom’s Made-in-the-USA capabilities (a move geared toward providing more certainty to customers in a time of tariffs and higher freight costs) and expand its overall portfolio of products. They’re excited to close Q4 strongly with an impressive gifting lineup that includes over 100 new items.
AI Perspective
Stier: “Personally, I’ve become an avid user of ChatGPT and Claude. I’ve used ChatGPT to help summarize complex legal documents and to synthesize data. Within our business, we’re currently making a significant investment in standing up an in-house AI team within our IT/Operational group. The key, however, is ensuring we operate securely by protecting our data. We want to be aggressive in deploying AI, as we know it will lead to business and process efficiencies, but we want to proceed methodically in doing so. We expect continued adoption in business as we work to make our processes more efficient. Everything in our business starts and ends with the customer. If we can use data to operate better, we will do it.”